When our copy of Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer arrived back on August 2nd Elena took it and buried her nose in it for two days until she was done reading it. Yep, 750 pages, two days. I decided there must be something to this series of books, so I decided to start. I’ve spent the last 4 weeks or so reading the entire series: Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and today I finished Breaking Dawn, thereby completing the series.

So what did I think?  Well, I did read all of them in 4 weeks, so it must have been good.  I was intrigued and it was entertaining.  I did realize after reading book one why Tim didn’t like it.  It’s not really the kind of story that teenage boys would enjoy.  It’s a love story, no doubt about it.  And much to Elena’s chagrin, I did have a big piece of the puzzle figured out way ahead of time.  Foreshadowing… sometimes it’s too blatant.

The final book was pretty good as well except for 1) I don’t think I would want my 12 year old daughter to read it.  It is much more of a 17 or older book.  And 2) I thought the ending was kind of empty.  Not sure why.  I could expand on those thoughts, but I don’t want to give anything away.

If you haven’t read them, then I would recommend it.  It’s no Harry Potter, but it is certainly entertaining.  It’s a good story, and it contains a good message as well.  And of course, the Twilight movie arrives in November.  It’s always interesting to see how they change things for a movie…

A couple of months back Tomax management wanted all the upper level managers to read chapter four of the book Good to Great by Jim Collins.  They printed copies and gave them to everyone.  The full book is only about 220 pages so I decided to get it and read the whole thing.

The book is all about how some companies push past being just “good” and move on to being “great”.  The case is presented for a dozen or so companies that met a certain criteria for “good to great” and then there were comparison companies as well.  Comparisons like Kroger vs. A & P, Walgreens vs. Eckerd, Wells Fargo vs. Bank of America, etc.  There is a lot of data presented, and a lot of interviews with executives of those companies.

What I liked best is the summarization of the book’s ideas.  Everything was pretty straightforward.  It was well presented, backed up with good data, and easy to follow.  It presented a lot of philosophies of business that I agree with: promote from within, find good people first, discipline and focus, etc.

And what’s even better is what is in chapter 4 that Tomax wanted us to read.  The title is “Confront the Brutal Facts”.  The chapter is all about bringing everything out into the open with brutal honesty.  This has been the mantra of Tomax for the last month or so.  “Andrew, let us know what the brutal facts are of these plans”.  So… I’ve been letting them have it.  :-)  So far it’s being taken well.  I’ve always had the reputation since I returned to Tomax of being the guy who will “tell it like it is”.  That’s been on purpose.  I told myself that if I went back I wasn’t going to just let things go anymore.  I think it is finally getting through, and more importantly, being welcomed.  Time will tell.  In our management meeting last Monday the question was asked if anyone had any “brutal facts” to bring up.  The room was silent for a moment and then they turned to me and said “Andrew, you’re the proverbial bee in Tomax’ bonnet, you must have something!… (but don’t worry… you’re a friendly bee!”  Ahhh… infamy.

So the book is really pretty good.  A good read for anyone involved in business, and I’d even say good for anyone involved in management.

I just finished reading The World Is Flat by Thomas L. Friedman. What an excellent book. It is a really compelling tale of the current state of the world in regards to free trade, outsourcing, and technology. I’ve never read a book before where I literally found myself agreeing with every point that was made. I thought all of his ideas were spot on.

He has a great way with words and with breaking concepts down into simple terms. But at the same time, still being able to remain technical. I especially liked his “Dell Theory of Conflict Prevention“. He is referring to Dell, the multi-national computer conglomerate. Whether or not you like Dell, you have to admit that their supply chain and usage of technology to get your computer order taken, assembled, and shipped is amazing. (For details on this supply chain, see pages 414 - 419 in the book.)

“No two countries that are both part of a major global supply chain, like Dell’s, will ever fight a war against each other as long as they are both part of the same global supply chain. Because people embedded in major global supply chains don’t want to fight old-time wars anymore. They want to make just-in-time deliveries of goods and services — and enjoy the rising standards of living that come with that.” — The World Is Flat, p. 421

He translates participation in what I would call “ultra-capitalism” as a so-called “cure” for war mongering. Ha! But I admit, it does certainly make sense.

It is an excellent book. Anyone who is involved in anything having to do with technology today should certainly read it. And for anyone else, it is a good insight into how quickly the world is changing, right under everyone’s noses.

For the last few weeks I have been reading 1776 by David McCullough. Back when I started travelling in May I needed a book to read. My wife suggested this one, and we already had it so I took it. I will admit that for the first 50 pages or so I was rather bored. There was a lot of information to process. And the author starts tossing around names and introducing people so fast that I was starting to lose track. It was only until his description of George Washington and the battle in Boston that I really got pulled in.

It goes to show how little I knew about the revolution. High school history doesn’t do it justice. July 4th, Independence Day, is celebrated now with much fanfare, but back in 1776, July 4th, and the signing of the declaration was actually the start of a downhill slide for America. One that almost became impossible to pull out of except for the resolve of one man, and a quick turning point during Christmas of 1776. In regards to George Washington, the author sums him up pretty well:

“He was not a brilliant strategist or tactician, not a gifted orator, not an intellectual. At several crucial moments he had shown marked indecisiveness. He had made serious mistakes in judgement. But experience had been his great teacher from boyhood, and in this his greatest test, he learned steadily from experience. Above all, Washington never forgot what was at stake and he never gave up.” - 1776, p. 293

I would highly recommend the book. It made me want to go back to Virginia and tour the historical sites there again. Then I would head north through Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, seeing everything along the way.

I finished reading Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination by Neal Gabler a few weeks ago. It was a really good book. As anyone who knows me and my family, we love all things Disney. So when this book was published I thought I would give it a try. At over 800 pages (over 200 of which are bibliography information) I wasn’t sure I’d get through it. But it kept me intrigued. It was written really well with a good narrative.

The book delves into Walt Disney’s upbringing, and all of the milestones along his life path until his death. It was interesting to read about how he was continually trying to out do himself. Nothing was ever “done”, he was always trying to “plus” things. And for that reason, Disneyland was his greatest accomplishment, his greatest triumph. It was something that he could continually update.

His plans for Walt Disney World were also very interesting to read. I believe that if Disney hadn’t have died when he did, Walt Disney World would be something much different than what it is today - and I’m not sure if that would be good or bad.

So, if you’re a Disney fan at all, you should read this book. And if you’re only a devout fan, it is still very interesting and a good read.