Dan's 2019 Books

12. Educated by Tara Westover
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I felt like this book was very similar to The Glass Castle. If you liked that one, you'll probably enjoy this one too. In many ways Tara's upbringing was so different from mine that it is hard to imagine someone younger than me having had these experiences. Though we both were raised as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, I feel that her family practices the faith in a way that is completely foreign to me and did not parallel my experiences very closely. I don't think it is representative of the faith as a whole in almost any degree. Regardless, the book was interesting, kind of intense, and insightful. Certainly well written and enjoyable to read.

11. Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I saw the movie about Theranos and Elizabeth Holmes and was pretty sure that I wasn't going to learn a lot more from reading the book. I was wrong. The book had a lot more good and interesting details to add to the story that were not able to be shared in the movie. This whole story is pretty crazy. It's amazing they got as far as they did, no one blew the whistle on them sooner, and that Elizabeth was able to fool so many people for so long. It was a noble goal to accomplish what they were trying for, but they got off track pretty far and sucked a lot of people into it. Sad commentary on humanity.

10. White Fang by Jack London
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I re-read this book in anticipation of a trip to Skagway, Alaska. I wanted to better understand the men who passed that way into the Yukon Territory. It was pretty fun to read and I liked it just as much this time as the several before that I've ready it. My favorite Jack London book.


9. The Call of the Wild by Jack London
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Obviously this is the classic Jack London book. This was much quicker to read than I remembered from last time. I enjoyed the storyline though and look forward to reading more Jack London books in the future.



8. The Reckoning by John Grisham
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

When I picked up this book, I didn't realize what a tragedy it was going to be. Sad as it was, the book was very compelling and had me waiting for the answer to the mystery right up to the very end of the book. It was interesting how the author wove in the story of the Bataan Death March and what a terrible event that was in the history of the US military. A lot of brave men were killed there. Anyway, I liked the book and was interested in the story line. I would not choose to read it again.

7. Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a very quirky book. I enjoyed it quite a bit and the story was pretty compelling for how strange it was. I thought the author did a good job of weaving the story and telling about what happened to Bernadette. It was a bit far-fetches as far as plausibility of the plot line, but if you overlook that a little and enjoy the story I think you'll like it as much as I did.

6. Saints, Vol. 1: The Standard of Truth, 1815-1846 The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I thought the Church did a very good job of weaving historical facts with life stories to tell about the happenings early in Church history. I was reminded how human Joseph Smith and the others who restored the Church were as they learned about Christ's gospel line upon line. It was sad to be reminded of all the suffering and persecutions the early saints of the church faced. Certainly their ancestors have been blessed because of their sacrifices.

5. The Total Money Makeover: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness by Dave Ramsey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a very concise book about money management. As you'd expect, Dave teaches us to make sure we're not spending more than we're earning and preaches excessively against debt in any form. I found his suggested method for financial fitness to be very sound and hope to better employ some of the principles he preaches.

4. Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War by Robert Coram
My rating: 4 of 5 stars


It would have been an interesting experience to have met John Boyd in person. I get the sense I may not have really clicked well with his approach and style. However, this book was pretty captivating and interesting for me. I loved to hear about his assessment of the aircraft and how they performed in aerial combat. It was just as compelling to hear about the intricacies of the US Military and the games that must be played to accomplish the end goal. Boyd's axiom of, "Are you going to be somebody or are you going to do something?" seems to fly in the face of how we think life should be, but probably comes closer to the truth than most of us would like to admit. I liked the book and recommend it. It does have a pretty healthy smattering of sailor language (mostly Boyd quotes) and there were a few parts about 3/4 of the way into the book where it seemed to drag a little, but overall I enjoyed it and found it to be good quality, educational, and entertaining.

3. The Self-Driven Child: The Science and Sense of Giving Your Kids More Control Over Their Lives by William Stixrud
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

While I can't say this book was a compelling page turner, I did learn quite a bit from listening to it. I was surprised that as much of the suggestions and research were applicable to me as they seemed to be to my kids. The book is written in a way that covers motivating kids in general, and then breaks it down somewhat into age groups, so not all of it is applicable to my current child situation right now. I suppose that much of the book could have been boiled down into about 10 key points of things to do to give your kids more control. That would be a handy quick reference guide, if such a thing exists. Now to put this into practice...

2. Over the Edge of the World: Magellan's Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe by Laurence Bergreen
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Although I enjoyed the story and felt that there was a lot of interesting content in the book, it seemed to drag on a little bit. Generally I learned a lot of new information about Magellan's circumnavigation of the world. The story was told clearly and was easy to understand. It contains a bit more sexual content than I had bargained for, but it was presented in a factual way to describe the sailors actions. It's kind of amazing any of the ships made it back to port after hearing about all the trails this armada went through!

1. Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption by Bryan Stevenson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I thought Bryan Stevenson did a good job arguing his case. The case studies he presents are interesting and although some have happy endings, not all of them are successes. I had a hard time following what exactly was the main theme or message of the book because Stevenson addresses so many facets. He spent a ton of time talking about racism within the judicial system. He also focused a lot on punishment for of minors. In addition to decrying the evils of giving people the death sentence or life in prison, there were about 10 other topics that he touches on. While I am all for doing everything in our power to keep innocent people free and taking extreme measures to ensure innocents are not wrongly found guilty, the counterpoints for when it is appropriate to imprison offenders were largely overlooked. While Stevenson was quick to point out cases where minorities were treated unfairly or indicate that there are disproportionate percentages of minorities in prison, he failed to indicate the percentages of crimes committed by minorities and if these percentages are aligned or not, avoiding a fair apples to apples comparison. It was in interesting book and generally I'd recommend it.