mcdonaldland

The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World, by Alan Greenspan

I like economics. I like finance. I like business. I (somewhat) like politics. So why wouldn't I like this book?

I'll tell you why: the content is interesting but the delivery put me to sleep. This book weighed in just shy of 600 pages. This would have been a great book if it had been half that size. As it turned out, the book was so fact filled with details that are important to a lifelong economist but largely irrelevant to the average Joe that it made the book very hard to read. I enjoy these things yet found myself having to reread some sections for understanding and others because I realized I had dazed out and had no idea what I just read.

I didn't finish this book for two reasons:

1. By the time I got to the end it was obvious that the predictions and plans laid out were irrelevant. The housing bubble had burst already and the thoughts contained in the latter chapters no longer mattered.

2. I was bored with it.

If you are interested in finance, economics, business, or politics this may be an interesting book for you. I don't have a high tolerance for this writing style but your mileage may vary. The price has dropped significantly lately so even if it ends up being a dust catcher, perhaps it is worth investigating.

Code Complete: A Practical Handbook of Software Construction, by Steve McConnell

This was a great book. If you have been in software for a significant time you are likely to have picked up many of these habits already, assuming you have been around experienced engineers who have helped you cultivate your software capabilities. It is chock full of useful information that every engineer should know. While this is a sure career improver for new engineers it has information that could easily be digested and used by even the most experienced programmer.

Seminal book. Buy it.

How to Get Your Point Across in 30 Seconds or Less, by Milo Frank

Ironically, this book is 128 pages long.  While it probably could have been shorter, there are a number of stories and anecdotes that help to illustrate the points Frank is putting forward.

If you have taken any courses, gone to any seminars, or read any books about public speaking there will be parts of this that are not new to you. If you have a broadcasting or journalism background you will likely find nothing new to you. However, if you don't fall into one of these categories you will find yourself learning the essential parts of any communication and how to effectively hook your audience in order to deliver the rest of your message. The 30 second message isn't meant to convey all the information at once - only enough to make your audience want more, which you will then happily deliver.

All in all, this book was worth the time it took to read. The concepts within are simple, yet effective. Buy it.