Book Review Mondays

Get your copy now at Amazon.com!

Embracing the wide sky: A tour across the horizons of the mind
by Daniel Tammet

Book Review by Richard L. Weaver II, Ph.D.

This book could easily be called “self-help for the brain” — as one reviewer of the book noted. Written in a simple, engaging style that is straightforward, Tammet (an autistic savant) offers his insights, research results, and opinions much as a professor lecturing to students; however, you must not allow this approach to render the book unapproachable or difficult. Indeed, this is a primer on the human brain, and through Tammet’s descriptions, you will quickly discover the immense potential we all possess.

I was fascinated with Tammet’s explanation of how he recited the mathematical constant Pi (3.141) from memory to 22,514 decimal places, or how he remembers the dates of the kings and queens of England or the presidents of the United States. This book allows you inside the mind of a savant as much as it educates you in how the mind developed, works, and can work more effectively. His insights on language and the language instinct, and numbers and the numbers instinct, creativityas a result of hyperconnectivity in the brain, are both instructive and astounding. The stories, examples, studies, and personal experiences will hold your attention.

His challenge to readers can be captured on page 219, where he says, “[Cultivate] a healthy curiosity about yourself and the lives and the world around you. Never stop asking questions, even if the answers seem far removed from your ability to immediately glimpse or grasp them. Find joy in learning.”

This is a fascinating, gripping, and highly informative book that I highly recommend.

----

Get your copy now at Amazon.com!

Rules of thumb: 52 truths for winning at business without losing your self
by Alan M. Webber

Book Review by Richard L. Weaver II, Ph.D.

Here is one of those books you can pick up, read a little, learn something new, then put down until you have another moment. The brief essays/rules are stimulating, accurate, and interesting, and because each is supported with an example, story, personal experience, or fascinating anecdote, the book will both grab your attention and hold it. From the front flyleaf, it describes the rules as “a collection that is as wise as it is useful and as honest as it is helpful.” Some of the rules that I found useful and instructive were, “Learn to take no as a question,” “Facts are facts; stories are how we learn,” “The soft stuff is the hard stuff,” “Words matter,” “Everything communicates,” “Everything is a performance,” “Don’t confuse credentials with talent,” “Failure isn’t failing. Failure is failing to try,” and “Take your work seriously. Yourself, not so much.” This book is a joy to read, and having it at arm’s length means you can read it and read it and read it — whenever you choose. It’s truly a gem of a book.

----

Through our reading, researching, and writing, And Then Some Publishing (and our extended family of readers) mine volumes of books representing a wide variety of tastes. We use the books in our writing, test and try suggested techniques, and we read for enjoyment as well. We wouldn't spend the time reviewing the books if we didn't get something out of it. Read more reviews on other fantastic books at our BookWorksRules.com website.