Books I read in January and February

This book is characterized by its portrayal of Christianity as a force of love and kindness, with the author using personal stories to show the impact of Christian values in everyday life. Despite a lack of scripture citation, an additional bible study is offered for those desiring a more theological approach. The author encourages practical application of Christian principles, rather than theological debates. Some criticism targets the author’s wealth, particularly his organization of a tour for his children to meet global leaders, seen as unrealistic for most. Yet, the author argues that these actions can be scaled to fit any economic situation, illustrating the book’s message as universally relevant and inspiring.

“A Wicked War” offers a compelling dive into the often-overlooked Mexican American War, shedding light on how the concept of Manifest Destiny played a pivotal role in the conflict’s inception. By intricately weaving the threads of slavery’s influence throughout the narrative, the author provides a robust analysis of the political forces at the time. The book succeeds not only in delivering historical facts but also in capturing the human elements of the era, making it a substantial read for those looking to enrich their understanding of this chapter in US history.

This book is a series of essays on this history of black people in the South, especially during Jim Crow through the current time.   There is a lot of good information in the book, but I found it disjointed. 

Another excellent book by Isabel Wilkerson.  This book looks at the many acts of discrimination in American History against minorities of being as much acts of classism as anything else.   To quote the author “caste is the infrastructure of our divisions. It is the architecture of human hierarchy, the subconscious code of instructions for maintaining, in our case, a four-hundred-year-old social order.”  Interestingly she also reports how the Nazi’s studied the treatment of blacks in the South and was used as a model for their treatment of Jews, Gypsies and other groups they targeted.  She also advises that it is our choice if we continue to follow this model going forward.

This great book talks about how Washington, Madison, John Jay and Alexander Hamilton led to moving from a group of 13 separate colonies into a new nation with a centralized government. 

George Mason was a key participant in the founding of the United States even writing a version of the Bill of Rights when he was governor of Virginia and them working with Madison on the version in the constitution.  This is an excellent biography and gives a different perspective on the early history of our country.

 A good book on the period after the Civil War which greatly changed our country and which the author considers a second founding of our nation.  The main  focus is on how the 13^th, 14^th and 15^th amendments and how dramatically it changed the constitution

This is a different look at FDR than other of I have read.  It looks at his presidency through the work of his four closest lieutenants. These four people, Harry Hopkins, Harold Ickes, Henry Wallace, and Frances Perkins did a lot of the work in the programs we remember from his Presidency.  I have read many books on FDR but this book gave me more insight into the work behind the programs.

These two women had very different political ideologies and legal philosophies but who often partnered up during the Supreme Court.  It covers both of their paths to Supreme Court which were also very different/ Sandra spent much of her pre SCOTUS days as a state wide politician before becoming the first woman on the court.  Ruth spent more time on the bench.  It was interesting to see how they both worked to build consensus in their own way. Our current Supreme Court would certainly gain value from the wisdom of these two trailblazing women.

This is a riveting memoir from a well known journalist tells the story of a young woman who looses her mother at a young age to cancer and then her father remarries and she is pushed into a strict evangelical family.  Her life goes awry and them as an adult she pulls her life back together.  This book reminds be of Educated. 

This book by Dworkin discusses a political philosophy that supports democracy by laying out two core principles that citizens should share: first, that each human life is intrinsically and equally valuable, and, second, that each person has an inalienable personal responsibility for identifying and realizing value in his or her own life. I found it an interesting discussion, though some of my conservatives may not enjoy it as much.

I enjoyed this book about how small groups across the country are building an economy that benefit the whole community and not mainly the elite

Simon Winchester looks at the Pacific Ocean and how politics, people, weather and other items affect the ocean in the past, today and likely in the future.  Each chapter tells a story of one aspect of the story of the Pacific, from coral reefs, to earthquakes and volcanoes as well as the rise of Japan’s manufacturing

This book is part of the Lazarus/Decker series but is different than the other ones I have read in that it is told from the perspective of Cindy Decker.  It Is shorter than  the other books from Faye Kellerman but I enjoyed  in fleshing out Cindy Decker character.

This is an early book in the Vera Stanhope series.  I have watched most of the seasons of the British TV show based on this character but the book fleshes out the characters more.  It is more slow-moving than many police procedural mystery series.   I enjoyed the story and learning more about the character.  I look forward to reading more books in this series.

This is the first in Blake Pierce’s Avery Black series.  Avery is a former hot shot attorney that’s career was derailed by getting a serial killer off who went on to kill again.  She then joined the police force as a sort of atonement.  She does not get a lot of respect from her co-workers or boss but after a series of murders fall to her, she starts to gain their respect.

This is the second book in the Avery Black series. Avery and her partner have started a romantic relationship so she switches partners and is given the worst of the detectives. Once again she finds another serial killer. Fast moving and interesting.

This is the 3rd book in the Ella Dark series. Ella is a relatively new profiler on a case in San Diego on the trail of a killer that is trying to mimic and outdo the Zodiac Killer. It is a well paced story with just enough twists and turns to keep it interesting.

This is an interesting legal thriller from the perspective of an Atlanta ADA. There are a number of twists and turns and the story cycles through a number of different suspects. I found it fun.

I have just started reading J.A. Jance this year. I started with the Ali Reynolds series. This series is about a news anchor who was fired to be replaced by a younger rival, goes to Arizona to start over and then starts to investigate her best friend’s death. I think Ali Reynolds makes a compelling lead character as she uses her reporting skills to delve into a mystery.

The second book in the Ali Reynolds series. Ali returns to LA to finalize her divorce. After her soon to be ex does not turn up, he is discovered as murder victim and Ali becomes a suspect. I thought this book had a few more twists and turns than the first book in the series.

Renee Ballard teams up with Harry Bosch to solve a cold case of a young girl who was murdered. Although Bosch has retired, he continues to work as a volunteer. This is a typical Bosch book and I like seeing how the relations between Ballard and Bosch grows.

This book is part of the Dismas Hardy legal thriller series. There has been a high profile political murder and the mayor has assigned the case to his good friend Abe Glitsky. However, other powers in the Police Dept., believe Hardy’s client and former girlfriend is the killer. The two long time friends need to team up to find the real killer. This is a fast moving story but may be difficult to follow if you have not read the earlier books in this series.

This series is one of my favorites. This time Savage and Sherlock are asked to help a well-known Senator who is being plagued by eerie ghost-like images. As they dig into who or what is causing them, the VP is nearly killed and the pair must find out how the two things are related. Lots of twists and very entertaining.

A good romance style book about two identical twins who are polar opposites. As they near 40 one is a rule follower under their mother’s thumb while the other is more a free spirit who takes more after their father.  The book  follows them during a summer where their father passes away and they are finally speaking after more than 10 years.  It has some romance to it but is more of a family study.

Marie Benedict is my favorite historical fiction writer.   This is a book based on the true story of Rosalind Franklin, a woman who played a serious rule in the discovery of DNA but who is often overlooked.   It shines a light on the challenges faced by women in the 50’s and 60’s, when very few women worked in science.  It is not her most engaging story but I really enjoyed it.