The Age of Will

If you work in a large organization, you may be a peacock in the land of penguins.

This is a fable, of a peacock who was brilliant. He was recruited by the penguins because of his brilliance, but once he was in the land of penguins, he did not fit in. He was not black and white, he was multi-hued. His bosses didn’t like him because he was not like them. His co-workers who were penguins did not like him because he was not a penguin.

In addition to the peacock, there are other exotic birds in the land of penguins, but they don’t fit in either. All of the penguins want all of the other birds to be just like them, and when they cannot be like penguins, they are disliked and dismissed.

For anyone who has ever felt that their contributions to an organization are dismissed because of who they are rather than the work they do, this book will hit a cord. For anyone who has felt that they are on the outside because they aren’t like the ruling class (the “penguins”), this book will hit a cord.

In addition to the fable, the third edition has strategies for peacock survival in the land of penguins. It is interesting to see the strategies and which ones could be used. Interestingly, this book was given to me by a woman who is fairly high in the chain, and might be described as a penguin.

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This is a story about the year two colored nuns came to a small town in Southern Louisiana to teach at the white Catholic school. One nun was to teach first and one fifth grade. But the real story is about change, and growth.
Vivian Leigh (named after the movie star) is 10 and in the fifth grade. The story follows her, her little sister, and their friends, family, and neighbors. All the people of Vivian Leigh’s little town begin to question their place in the world, and how they think about others’ places.
It seems strange now, in 2004, to think about the mid-1950s and how people were worried about a “colored” nun teaching their white children. I cannot help but draw the conclusion that in 50 years, the worry now about gays teaching will have the same strangeness.
[bookdetail]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/bookdetail/book_id/732

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Coyote is an epic novel of space travel and migration to the stars told in three parts.
In part one, the government has twisted and grown more powerful. Radicals or Dissident Intellectuals (DI’s) are closely monitored and often sent to rehabilitation camps with the families. DI’s are no longer allowed to participate in scientific research or space exploration.
The government hatches a plan to send a space ship on a one way journey to colonize a distant planet. The goal is to prove the might of the government. The excessive cost of the project throws the country into dire financial trouble.
At the last minute and with much slight-of-hand, a group of DI’s replace the majority of the ships crew and compliment with their own people. And the journey begins.
In part two, the entire ships crew is in hibernation sleep. The ships computer has complete control of operations and will revive the crew upon arrival at their destination 230 years after departure.
But three months into the journey a crew member is inadvertently brought out of hibernation sleep. Leslie Gillis the ships navigation officer is awake on the ship by mistake only three months into the journey. The ships computer has specific orders and can not put Mr. Gillis back into hibernation sleep. So he learns how to live on his own. Fortunately the ship is stocked with food and water for when the colonists reach their destination.
Mr. Gillis eventually learns to cope with the loss and the loneliness. On two separate occasions, he is startled by what looks like another ship out in the star field. He desperately tries to make contact, but is unable to. To pass the time, he starts a journal which quickly turns into a novel.
In part three, the ship arrives at its destination and the crew is brought out of hibernation sleep. The fact that Mr. Gillis was brought out early is discovered as well as his paintings and writing. He also left a message for the captain about a traitor.
The colonists are relieved to find that the planet they are heading to, called Coyote, will support human life. The 230 year gamble based on scientific observation has paid off.
A colony is setup on the planet and they begin their life adapting to the new surroundings.
This is a well written story with engaging and believable characters. I highly recommend this book.
[bookdetail]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/bookdetail/book_id/654
[author]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/browsebook/pagenum/1/author/Allen%20%20Steele

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The concept is in the title. When you die, you meet five people in heaven. These five people help you understand certain things about your life. They may help you understand how interconnected we all are, or how forgiveness is healing, or whatever. I found the concept fascinating, and wondered about the five people I might meet.
The book follows an old man, who dies. He meets people in heaven he might not have expected to meet, including a man he only saw once, but whose life he changed. He also meets people he might have expected to meet, including his wife. This is a very quick read, but if you are easily touched, have tissues ready!
While the story was good, the concept is fabulous. I can’t help but wonder about the five people, and, perhaps more importantly, whose life lessons I might help teach. All in all, well worth the read.
[bookdetail]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/bookdetail/book_id/694

[ src="http://images.amazon.com/images/P/042517140X.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg" alt="BookDetail" />][bookdetail]
Eve Dallas is a cop, in New York. But she’s a few years ahead of us (it’s unclear to me, but at least 30 to 40 years), and the toys the police have are lots of fun. More fun, however, was the fast pacing and the mystery of “Cassandra.”
“Cassandra” is threatening to blow up targets in New York, and Dallas must confront and, if possible, prevent the death of thousands of people. (Watch for confusion with the name; Dallas is the last name, Eve the first; they are used apparently at random.) Luckily, Dallas has an excellent team, from her assistant Peabody to a Bomb Squad any modern cop would kill for (literally!). And, in her back pocket, the perfect non-official assistant: her husband Roark. And what a man! He’s rich, intelligent, very talented in computers and disarming bombs, and stunningly good looking. (This is the only real hint that J.D. Robb is Nora Roberts, a romance novelist. I don’t know that I’ve ever met a man with even two of those characteristics!)
The pace is fast, if sometimes confusing. The leap Dallas makes to solve the case goes unexplained, however. I didn’t make the leap, so don’t know how she did! But a fun, relatively quick read. I will certainly look for others by J.D. Robb and read them!
[bookdetail]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/bookdetail/book_id/699

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If you’ve read [The DaVinci Code][dvc], and you liked the basic plot twists, you will love [Deception Point][bookdetail].
The novel begins with a very interesting hook: A dog sledder and his dogs are thrown out of a helicopter into a crack in the ice. From there, things go very high tech. Without giving too much away, there’s a meteor from space with proof of life on another planet. And the Senator who is running for President, and his daughter, who works for the current President. And lots of other interesting and intriguing people.
As with [Dan Brown's][author] other books, this is a fast-paced thriller. But I have become more dissatisfied with how the books end. There is almost a miraculous ending to all of [Brown's][author] books I’ve read so far. I can stretch my imagination to Speculative Fiction (formerly known as Science Fiction), but I can’t wrap my brain around what is suppose to be real life today with miraculous endings. Especially when, as in this book, the ending is supposed to be due to natural causes. Nature, in my experience, seldom rescues people.
Nonetheless, this was a fun, light read.
[bookdetail]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/bookdetail/book_id/661
[author]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/browsebook/pagenum/1/author/Dan%20Brown
[dvc]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/bookdetail/book_id/609

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[The Confessions of Max Tivoli][bookdetail] is a story written as a journal or memoir in three main acts. The writer of the memoir is Max Tivoli, a man born to well-to-do parents in the late nineteenth century San Francisco. Like most people, Max deals with uncertainties about relationships and purpose. He starts the story with:

“We are each the love of someone’s life.”

Max bears a unique curse however. Born with the physical appearance of an old, dying man, he ages and matures like anyone, but his physical age appears to go backwards.
A heart breaking story told with excellent prose, vivid historical references and images and well written characters. Highly recommended.
[bookdetail]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/bookdetail/book_id/659

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Dave Pelzer has written several books about his childhood and growing up. He has written several motivational and leadership books. But in this latest memoir, the author shares with us growing up as a teenager struggling for independence and more importantly, acceptance.
The book recants the tales of a young man negotiating a course through foster families, high school hallways full of bullies and part-time jobs.
There is something in this book for everyone, the feeling of being behind the wheel of a car for the first time – the feeling of freedom and power, the challenges of new friends and growing up and apart, the promises and hopes of youth.
Well written and gripping – highly recommended.
[bookdetail]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/bookdetail/book_id/663