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I picked up a copy of John Hodgman’s “More Infromation Than You Require” a few months back when I saw that a signed 1st edition was available from Powell’s (only one left at the time of writing!).

John Hodgman Autograph

I have always enjoyed John’s appearances on “The Daily Show”, and as PC in the Apple commercials.  After reading this book, I can say he is quite a strange man with a very good imagination.  The book is a rambling continuation of his first book, “The Areas Of My Expertise”, which I haven’t read, but from what I can tell from the many references in “More Information Than You Require”  is very similar. This book is quite funny.  I read part of it on the train, and more than once cracked up laughing, probably causing my fellow passengers to wonder about me.

The book is broken down into several sections, such as “The Presidents of the United States: Are they the new hoboes?”, and “How to be famous”.  He also has a section where he offers advice on a number of issues, including technology and protecting yourself from identity theft that is hilarious.

The book is laid out in a reference book format.  Each page, including the title page, contains a little fact from a date in history, starting with October 21 – the date the book is published.  The facts have no relation to the rest of the content, so you end up having to switch contexts on every page, which can be quite annoying, but some of them are pretty funny.  There are also a number of tables, sidebars, and strange pictures to support the content.  Hodgman has managed to do many other creative things with the book.  For example, the page numbering starts at 237, a continuation from his previous book.

After a few hundred pages of random “facts” and humor, there is a large section of the book devoted to describing mole-men (some sort of human that lives underground) and their interactions with humans throughout recent history.  In this section, Hodgman lists 700 mole-man names (ex. 611. Mr Drew Danglemites, a gem swallower).   I think the mole-men chapter was about the time when I just wanted to finish the book.

If you’re a John Hodgman fan, I highly recommend this book.  It’s filled with his unique sense of humor, and is a good change of pace for you to add to your reading list.

I read Serve God, Save the Planet a number of months ago, but was prompted to write about it based on the story in the NY Times today about a change in the Southern Baptist Convention’s official stance on climate change and another story on the addition of pollution to the official list of sins in the Catholic church. Obviously, climate change, pollution, the environment, energy consumption, and similar issues are not going away any time soon.

Serve God, Save the Planet, A Christian Call to Action is written by Matthew Sleeth, a former ER doctor from the East coast. He was living the good life, with a big house, nice cars, and a good career. Then he began to notice how many of his patients were coming into the ER with sicknesses related to environmental issues, from asthma to breast cancer. As he started to look into the issues behind these illnesses, he was convicted by his own lifestyle and how it contributed to the environmental damage that was causing these problems.

This book is an easy read with lots of practical advice. He backs up his viewpoints with scripture, and shares some fascinating stories. Most of us have heard “tree huggers” telling us how to live, but this book really prompted me to action. After reading it, I immediately made a couple of changes that I have stuck with since:

• I have stopped taking my lunch in plastic bags to work that I threw out – I’m now recycling all plastic bags
• I am not going to put pesticides or herbicides on my lawn – I still have a bag of Scotts in the garage from last spring
• I am turning off lights like crazy around the house
• I turned the thermostat down one degree this winter

One thing I like about this book is that it doesn’t spend time debating whether climate change is real or not – it concentrates on the real measurable impact of our consumption on the world’s resources. It really is an environmentalist primer for Christians, with scripture to back it up. This would make a great book for discussion in a small group or among friends.

I was first exposed to Michael Lopp’s writing from his blog, Rands in Repose. Rands is his pen name, and the blog deals with issues around managing technology professionals, from a Silicon Valley perspective. When I heard that he had published a book, I knew I had to read it. Managing Humans is 34 chapters divided into three parts: The Management Quiver, The Process is the Product, and Versions of You. Each chapter reads like a short essay, some of them have already been published in some form on his blog. Since I am not a manager, the first part was not as relevant for me in my day-to-day work, but really helped me to better understand my current and past managers. Just like watching Office Space, this book will give you so many “That’s so true!” moments. I’m sure anyone reading read the book will have the same experience, even if they have not worked in technology in any capacity – just being in an organization with more than one layer would suffice. I am going to make sure my manager reads this book, especially the first section. The second section is very helpful for anyone involved in software or technology projects. The third section has some great chapters on resumes, interviews, starting a new job, and navigating meetings.

I think having my wife read the chapter on N.A.D.D. (Nerd Attention Deficiency Disorder) and A Nerd in a Cave will do more to help her understand me than hours of conversation on the subjects covered there. For example, N.A.D.D. is essentially that condition that enables a nerd to listen to music, read through 5 blog posts a minute in Google Reader, carry on 5 IM conversations, and write code all at the same time. Any Nerd will read these chapters and find themselves nodding and agreeing with the way the topic has been dealt with.

I also appreciated the chapter on outsourcing. There is some really good career advice in this book, especially for those of us in technical jobs. The book is also a quick read, in N.A.D.D.-friendly 5 page chapters. I found I could digest a few chapters on the commute home with no trouble. Take a look at the blog, and if you like the writing, pick up the book.

I finished George Barna’s Revolutionary Parenting a few months ago, but wanted to look at it again recently. Like most Barna books, it takes the research from Barna’s company and turns it into a book that attempts to show what the survey evidence supports. As a parent of a toddler, I’m very interested to find out what parenting actions I should be taking now to help my child grow into a mature Christian.

Like Barna’s earlier book, Revolution, he attempts to distinguish between ordinary Christians (or in this case, Christian parents) and “Revolutionary” ones using his research. He defines a Revolutionary Parent as one who applies biblical commands, principles, and narratives, using the Bible as the guide to raise a child. The goal of a revolutionary parent is to raise their children to make their faith in God their highest priority in life, living as servants of God.

This book is a pretty quick read at 158 pages in the hardcover, although the size is quite small with large print. Each chapter has a quick review at the end, along with a few “hands on” questions. The book is broken into three parts, Reasons, Research, and Relevance. The first covers how the research was started and why Barna was motivated to write the book. He is raising children of his own, and thus personally interested in the research. The second part of the book covers the research, with seven chapters that focus on different areas such as the best conditions for raising children successfully and the behaviors found most commonly in revolutionary parents. These chapters include a number of excellent quotes from both the adult children of revolutionary parents and the parents themselves, along with a number of great suggestions and ideas. The final section consists of two chapters. The first gives a set of rules for revolutionary parenting gleaned from the research, and the final chapter is a personal one by Barna describing how this approach changed his parenting. I think that is book is one that I need to review, perhaps yearly. It would be a good book to use in a group discussion, especially in a group with new and experienced parents in dialogue.

Henri Nowuen’s The Return of the Prodigal Son was recommended to me by my dad. Nouwen describes his interaction with the Rembrandt painting Return of the Prodigal Son and its impact on him over a period of about 10 years. Nouwen starts with a detailed description of the painting and the details he observed when he was able to spend an entire day observing it on display in the Hermitage in St. Petersburg. Then the book is broken into three main sections, corresponding to the three main characters in the story from Luke 15:11-31, the prodigal son, the elder son, and the father. Since first seeing the painting, Nouwen has seen himself in all three roles – and has progressed in his self-identification from one to the next.

This is the first book that I have read that provides a detailed look into one piece of art. I enjoyed the background information on Rembrandt and how his lifestyle and life tragedies affected his work. But what really sticks out is how Nouwen opens up about his own life and the humility he shows. At this point in his life, Nouwen was moving from a professorship at Harvard to a position caring for those with mental handicaps. His initial reaction to the painting was to see himself as the prodigal son, welcomed home by his father, forgiven of his terrible sin and selfishness. This is a comfortable place to be as a Christian, I think, and is definitely the place where we all start out, and in some sense, the position we always have when we consider our sin. But we can’t stay there forever. A friend pointed out to Nouwen that he felt he was the elder son, the one who had always done the right thing and deserving of preferential treatment, jealous of others who had not done what he had. He eventually came around to see this as truth. The final step for him was to be the father, caring for the spiritual needs of those around him at Daybreak, the community he joined.

This is a book that will probably be worth reading again. It would also be interesting to be able to see this painting in person. I would like to see more books like this – going into such depth on a single story and piece of art.

After reading Barack Obama’s The Audacity of Hope, I feel like I could vote for this man for president. I think the book did a good job of laying out his overall goals and tendencies as a legislator. He seems to be reasonable on most issues, taking a stance that would be similar to my own. There are a few things that he brought up in the book that stick out to me as reasons to vote for him.
* He was against the war from the beginning. This doesn’t mean that he has all the answers, but he has the credibility to say it was always a bad idea. Not many of the candidates can say that, especially Hillary. This gives him credibility on the major issue of the campaign.
* He is against the current policies of the Bush administration to cut taxes on the rich. He makes a good point that it is unheard of for a president to cut taxes and go to war at the same time. If we really are at war, then we need to pay the price as a nation.
* He is a reasonable man from reasonable beginnings. Unlike most recent presidents, he hasn’t lived a luxurious life up to this point. Compare that to Al Gore and George W. Bush – two prep school millionaire’s kids. As a black man, he has faced discrimination. As a son of a divorced couple, he has seen the pain of a broken family. He has lived overseas. This is a bit different from our current president. I saw an interview on the Daily Show with Joe Biden (about 5 mins in) where he talked about how George Bush, during his first term, asked Senator Biden to brief him on Europe before his first trip. Biden thought this was his first trip as _president_, but turns out it was his first trip ever. How did he ever get elected? And to think people say Obama doesn’t have enough experience. Bush didn’t have enough experience to lead a class trip to Europe.

The chapter on faith was a little weak. I think that he has reasonable perspectives on faith, but the impact of his faith on his life seems very general and not as personal as I might expect. He describes how he became involved in his church due to his involvement in community organizing. It almost has a feeling of being something that completes his image as opposed to something that is the driving force behind what he does. But he is not running for high priest, but rather president.

After reading the book, I wonder if the United States is really going to be able to elect a black man, or a woman, or a Mormon as the next president. I think we are ready, and this will be an interesting election – with race, gender, and religion less of a factor than ever before.

Finally, it seems that the country is headed for a time when we need to invest heavily in domestic programs – education, infrastructure, the environment – and we need to figure out Iraq. Obama looks like he has plans for these areas that will work. We’ll have to see how the race goes.

Joy at Work, by Dennis Bakke is the story of energy giant AES and their unique way of doing business. Bakke was an original founder and served as CEO until 2002, when he retired after the company’s stock went down the tubes during the Enron scandal. I admit that I had a very hard time taking most of what he said seriously once I knew that he was forced out of his own company, but now that I’ve read the entire book, I think that he spoke with credibility and authenticity in the book.

The last page of the book, and on Bakke’s site, he lists his Top 10. Number 2 is “The purpose of business is not to maximize profits for shareholders but to steward our resources to serve the world in an economically sustainable way.” I think that this really resonates with me, as I think most companies today will do anything they can to maximize profits, and do not see a company as a means for serving the world. If you are a person who wants to serve the world, you will probably look to a non-profit or government job, companies don’t seem to fit that description. Number 3 is “Attempt to create the most fun workplace in the history of the world”. This idea was one that got Bakke in some trouble with investors and his board. Most investors don’t like the idea of a company being a place where people have fun, since they must be wasting money.

I heard about this book from an advertisement on a Christian web site, but most of the book was written without direct reference to the Bible or Christian principles. In fact, AES operated in a number of countries where a majority of the employees did not come from a Christian background. He seems to appeal to a general audience throughout most of the book. However, in the postscript, Bakke talks about a number of personal examples from his church. For example, he discusses the common segmentation in Evangelical churches where “full-time” Christian work is elevated above public sector work which is elevated above private sector work. As a result, most Christians see the 2-10 hours a week they put in at church as the work that has a spiritual impact, and the 40+ hours a week they spend at work as having no spiritual impact. Pastors should learn how to help their congregations see their work as their calling, and that God can and will use them in business roles to have an impact for the kingdom.

One other idea that was quite interesting is for churches to consider commissioning individuals into their business jobs. We commission missionaries and pastors, but why not people in industry and business? Bakke had asked his church for accountability for how he ran his business, and he didn’t get a response from his elder board. I wonder if my church would be any different? I think we demand a lot of accountability for the stewardship of all money given to our local church, but do we hold ourselves and our own companies to the same standards? I think Christians should be in willing and churches should be ready to help with accountability in these areas.

The book dragged on a bit longer than I think was necessary. I really liked the first few and last chapters. There was quite a bit of repetition, I think an editor could have trimmed 25-30 pages pretty easily. There is also a lot of good reference material in the appendices for anyone thinking of using the book as a reference for implementing some of the ideas presented.

I would recommend this book for anyone working in the business world and who is disenchanted with the way most companies are run. Whether most people will be able to change their organizations enough to implement these ideas is probably another matter, however I think individual managers and workgroups can use many of these ideas to make work a more joyful place, and Christians can see how their work in business can help redeem this world. If someone is thinking of starting a new company and wants to create a workplace that is fun and fulfilling for its employees, this book might be a good source of ideas.