Year Read: 2013

The Wolf Gift

Anne Rice 2012
Read: 2013
Fiction

This was a book that my wife Jill was reading for her book club near their Halloween meeting. Although I’m a fan of science fiction, I’m not much into the Werewolf/Vampire genre of books. I certainly appreciated Lupin the werewolf in the Harry Potter books, but this book focuses entirely on it. I hate to […]

Winter of the World

Ken Follett 2012
Read: 2013
Fiction

If you liked the Fall of Giants (I did), then you will like this one too. The same families in the first book now witness the rise of the Third Reich, World War II, and all of the surrounding events of the 30s and 40s. A great page turner. I look forward to reading the last book in the trilogy […]

Wheat Belly

William Davis, MD 2013
Read: 2013
Non-Fiction

After reading this, my weight dropped from 205 to 197. If I was truly dedicated, it would go even lower. I recommend it for a very quick read. I don’t think he is wrong. My favorite line is when Dr. Davis talks about all of the marathoners and triathletes who have a paunch. How can […]

Stranger in a Strange Land

Robert Heinlein 1961
Read: 2013
Fiction

My dad recommended this book to me. It’s a combination of science fiction, sixties mentality and utopian society thinking that had me going back and forth between wanting to stop reading the book but also wanting to see the full evolution of the thinking of Mr. Heinlein. The hero, a Martian, tries to (1) adapt to our […]

The One Thing

Gary Keller 2012
Read: 2013
Non-Fiction

First and foremost, any book that contains a reference to any of my amazing family is a great book for me to to read. Mr. Keller praises my artist brother Pat Matthews, and his focus and ability to paint one painting each and every day. Way to go Pat!   As you can see from […]

The Hobbit

JR Tolkein 1937
Read: 2013
Fiction

My 25 year old son, who just graduated from law school, was my companion as we watched all of the Lord of the Rings movies come out during his time in high school.  Between the Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, we read some really fun books and got to see some highly entertaining […]

Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy

Douglas Adams 1980
Read: 2013
Fiction

Kind of a Catch 22 for Science Fiction. This is a book I’ve heard much about, but I’ve never read. The author is crazy, and I thought it highly entertaining and though provoking. Earth being blown up is really not even a passing thought, and it goes haywire from there.

Fall of Giants

Ken Follett 2010
Read: 2013
Fiction

It’s been years since I read Pillars of the Earth, but I remember loving it. Follett has published two books recently: Fall of Giants, a WWI book, and Winter of the World, on WWII. Fall of Giants is historical fiction were characters from the US, Russia, Germany and UK. It was one of those books […]

Fahrenheit 451

Ray Bradbury 1951
Read: 2013
Non-Fiction, Recommended for Young Adults

I reread this book after Ray Bradbury died. It was my way of paying homage to a great thinker. I was struck by his prediction of reality TV, something that existed neither when he wrote it nor when I read it in the 1970s, and how it sucks people in. His version of Big Brother […]

Enhancing Professional Practice: A Framework for Teaching

Charlotte Danielson 2007
Read: 2013
Education/Leadership, Non-Fiction

We are doing a lot of work on teacher evaluation in MBUSD, and Charlotte Danielson is regarded as one of the foremost experts on the subject. I worked with her many years ago on a teacher evaluation project in Santa Monica – Malibu USD, and I found her to be bright, engaging and completely passionate […]

The Diamond Age: Or, A Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer

Neal Stephenson 2000
Read: 2013

My sister-in-law recommended this book to me. It’s a science fiction book about a futuristic world where computers and humans are incredibly intertwined. I did not love the book, but there were many interesting elements of trying to bring reality back into people’s lives. The fascination of the future with the morality of the Victorian […]