Comments on: Summer reading: nonfiction

By: Betty

Betty — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 03:51:53 +0000

Ops! Something happened above with my link. So I tried it again.

I am currently reading a self-help (non-fiction) book by Libby Gill called UNSTUCK: Mastering the rules of risk-taking in work & life. It gives you a powerful process for getting UNSTUCK in your personal and professional life. The Clarify, Simplify & Execute process will show you how to clarify your vision, simplify the most direct route to get there, and execute your action plan against measurable milestones. So far it’s helped me overcome limiting assumptions and undermining behaviors. It’s been very empowering! FYI http://www.libbygill.com/

By: CharleyS

CharleyS — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 16:01:30 +0000

I just finished “The Sweet Life in Paris: Delicious Adventures in the World’s Most Glorious — and Perplexing — City” (Broadway Books, 2009) by David Lebovitz. Lebovitz is the former pastry chef from Chez Panisse and the author of a number of very good cookbooks. This book recounts his observations on food and culture in Paris and the odd experiences of an American living abroad. Witty and amusing.

FYI, his blog is at: http://www.davidlebovitz.com/

By: Carolyn (Cambridge)

Carolyn (Cambridge) — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 01:38:06 +0000

My perennial favorites in narrative non-fiction:
Harvey Oxenhorn’s classic “Tuning the Rig”;
David Lipsky’s 2003 book about West Point, “Absolutely American”;
and Kristen Laine’s 2007 “American Band.”

I found Atul Gawande’s “Better” a good deal more satisfying than “How Doctors Think,” –Groopman seemed to be writing in slow motion.

By: Amy R.

Amy R. — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 18:10:47 +0000

Other than “Mind Over Manners,” I recently finished Dr. Jerome Groopman’s “How Doctors Think” and “Julie and Julia.” The first one can get kind of dense — it’s part Mystery Diagnosis and part public policy. But it’s a valuable resource in being a good patient (whether you have chronic problems or not).

“Julie and Julia” was interesting. I wish it had focused more on the food, but I suppose that is what the blog was for. (Incidentally, I am now reading “Mastering the Art of French Cooking” because there is nothing like a cookbook that reads like a good book.)