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Category: Books

SWINDOLL’S BOOK OF STORIES

SWINDOLL’S BOOK OF STORIES

Charles R. Swindoll has collected stories and quotes in his book The Tale of the Tardy Oxcart. He talks about a story from Robert Coleman’s book Written in Blood involving a young girl who had a disease and needed a transfusion of some of her brother’s blood to overcome it. The doctor explained the need to the young boy and asked "Would you be willing to give your blood to your sister?" The boy hesitated a minute and said: "Yes,…

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The Country Humor of Jimmy Dean

The Country Humor of Jimmy Dean

I’ve finished an easily read book Jimmy Dean’s Own Story which does not represent an intellectual challenge, but which has it’s amusing moments. He’s subtitled it "Thirty Years of Sausage, Fifty Years of Ham." Some passages I thought worth repeating include his comment about having been brought up in the Seth Ward Baptist Church in a small town in Texas. He said about that religious experience: "I’ve always maintained that being a Baptist won’t keep you from sinnin’ but it’ll…

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The Sex Lives of Cannibals

The Sex Lives of Cannibals

The Sex Lives of Cannibals, a book by J. Maarten Troost, is not what the title would suggest. In fact, the book has nothing about sex or cannibals, but rather is a description of how a young man and his girl friend left the fast city life of the East Coast and moved to the remote South Pacific Tarawa Atoll. Those of us who lived through World War II will recall that the Tarawa Atoll is a series of small…

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RECENT READING REPORT

RECENT READING REPORT

I managed to get in some reading while working during our travels. Martin Howard has written a book We Know What You Want which manipulative means to influence choices people make.  Some of the things he reveals involve front groups or organizations which pretend to represent one agenda, but really have another. His example is that of Center for consumer Freedom (CCF) which claims it’s mission is to defend freedom of choice of consumers. In reality it is a front…

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Rex Harrison Biography “Fatal Charm”

Rex Harrison Biography “Fatal Charm”

Alexander Walker has written a biography about Rex Harrison, Fatal Charm. Several passages are worth noting. One was a reference to Harrison’s ability to use a pause for dramatic effect. A fellow actor noted "a very difficult thing to pause effectively."  In fact, when engaged in public talking, coversations or trial a pause is very hard because silence is intimidating. Timing is so crucial an ability to acquire as it requires self discipline and an awareness of the moment. Trial…

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Terry Gross: All I Did Was Ask & the Wisdom of Others

Terry Gross: All I Did Was Ask & the Wisdom of Others

Terry Gross has been the host of the NPR program Fresh Air for a long time. She conducts interviews and has conversations with writers, actors, musicians and artist’s. She collected her most interesting interviews in a book she titled All I Did Was Ask. It is an entertaining summary of conversations with people over the years of her radio work which I enjoyed reading. When she interviewed the actor Michael Caine he said some things I thought were informative. I…

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Improv Wisdom – A book Worth Reading

Improv Wisdom – A book Worth Reading

My friend Carl Bettinger who practices law in New Mexico has been active in improv work to improve his trial skills. He recently recommended that I read Improv Wisdom, subtitled "Don’t prepare, just show up" written by Patricia Ryan Madson. Here are a few of the ideas and observations from this short, informative book: Remember "pisces mortiu solum cum flumine natant" (only dead fish go with the flow) Say yes: Cultivate phrases like "you are right, Good idea" etc Substitute…

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A History of Southern Italy

A History of Southern Italy

One of the several books I read on our recent trip was Between Salt Water and Holy Water by Tommaso Astarita. It’s a history of southern Italy which unfortunately, was more informative then entertaining reading. It is a description of the many invasions and occupations of this part of Italy and the politics of the area. Both the Romans and the Greeks were interested in the beautiful coasts and fertile ground of the area, but many other cultures also occupied…

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Invisible Lines of Connection

Invisible Lines of Connection

Rabbi Lawrence Kushner, from Sudbury, Massachusetts, has written a number of books. One of them, Invisible Lines of Connection, is a collection of stories of observations of life events about connections between people and God. Some of his insights include the blackness of night while on a ship when one sees a light house light. He notes "Each lighthouse has its own distinctive pattern of flashes, a coded light-message which enables the approaching mariner to identify his location on the…

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Favorite Excerpts from Books I’ve Read

Favorite Excerpts from Books I’ve Read

Over the years of reading books, I’ve kept excerpts from some that amused me or interested me Here is a brief sampling of a few of the excerpts I saved. More to follow: All My Friends by George  Burns. In the book, Burns related the story about the man and woman who were driving to a masquerade party. He was dressed like a bull and she as a cow. The car broke down and they were walking across a pasture…

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