What I'm reading ...

I have started reading Middle Watch by Loretta Proctor. This is my next book club book, which is particularly interesting, as the author is local to where I live. She is going to attend a meeting of our group in June to discuss writing and answer our questions. Here's the blurb:

Middle Watch is a time when a man alone on a lighthouse in those wee small hours feels he's the only person in the world. A man awake and alone in the darkness of the night has time to think, and sometimes those thoughts turn towards revenge and hate. Bridie O'Neill was taken in as a baby by Dad Joe, whom she adores as if he were her real father. Unfortunately, Joe is away at sea most of the time and Bridie has grown up under the thumb of his mean-spirited wife, Millie, and her two bullying sons. The only joy in her life comes from the beautiful coastline near their home and Joe's occasional visits. When things come to a head between Bridie and Millie, Joe realises he needs to take Bridie - and himself - away from his poisonous wife. He starts a job as a lighthouse keeper at Longships Light. Bridie's life is transformed by this new life close to the wild Cornish seas. There she meets the dark, brooding Ryan, son of the Principal Keeper. The two young people fall deeply in love with one another. But Joe's family are not ready to let Bridie go. She is haunted by the idea that Millie will come after her, and Joe's older son Jim is starting to look at Bridie with a most unbrotherly interest. Wanting to escape the emotional turmoil and prove herself, Bridie sets out on her own to find work in London - but her actions set forth a chain of events that will end in tragedy on a lonely lighthouse amongst the crashing waves of the sea...

The Ruby in the Smoke - by Philip Pullman

Overall I thought that this book was a good read. As I gather it is aimed at younger readers, it is not very challenging to read, but that is not a criticism. The story is somewhat complex, but not baffling. There are quite a lot of significant characters, but I was never lost, so I suppose there weren't too many. It is a thriller, so I guess the fact that the whole story is incredibly unlikely doesn't matter. For a while, I found Sally a rather irritating character, as she seemed intelligent, but clueless. Then I remembered that all 16 year old girls are irritating.

I am not sure that I will read any more books in this series, as I have much competition for scarce reading time, but I would not reject one either.

What I'm reading ...

I have started The Ruby in the Smoke by Philip Pullman. This is my next book club book, which is annoyingly unavailable on Kindle. I have read other books by this author, but I am fairly sure that I have not read this one. Here's the blurb:

Sally is sixteen and uncommonly pretty. Her knowledge of English literature, French, history, art and music is non-existent, but she has a thorough grounding in military tactics, can run a business, ride like a Cossack and shoot straight with a pistol. When her dear father is drowned in suspicious circumstances in the South China Sea, Sally is left to fend for herself, an orphan and alone in the smoky fog of Victorian London. Though she doesn't know it, Sally is already in terrible danger. Soon the mystery and the danger will deepen - and at the rotten heart of it all lies the deadly secret of the ruby in the smoke...

Talk Like TED - by Carmine Gallo

In some ways this is a typical American business book - it has some fairly basic ideas, which are repetitively addressed in a variety of ways. Having said that, I felt that the ideas were valid and useful and the discussion and background gave them context. I believe that many presenters would learn a lot from this book. I have sat through too many long, boring presentations, so I see room for improvement.

Personally I did not learn a great deal of new stuff from this book, but a number of my ideas about how to make presentations better were reinforced and justified by the author's research. This will give me greater confidence in implementing them myself and advising others.

Bottom line: IMHO, anyone who does presentations - even infrequently - should read this book.

What I'm reading ...

I have started reading Talk Like TED by Carmine Gallo. My wife drew my attention to the book, having heard the author on the radio, so I had a listen and my interest was piqued. Then I spotted it was #1 on a best seller list for business books. I figured it might be helpful professionally. Here's the blurb:

TED talks have redefined the elements of a successful presentation and become the gold standard for public speaking around the world. TED and associated Tedx conferences are held in more than 130 countries and are being viewed at a rate of 1.5 million times a day. These are presentations that set the world on fire, and the techniques that top TED speakers use are the same ones that will make any presentation more dynamic, fire up any team, and give anyone the confidence to overcome their fear of public speaking. Communications coach and bestselling author of The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs, Carmine Gallo has broken down the top TED talks and interviewed the most popular TED presenters as well as the top researchers in the fields of psychology communications to get their cutting-edge insights and to reveal the 9 secrets of all successful TED presentations. From 'Unleashing the Master Within' and 'Delivering Jaw Dropping Moments' to 'Sticking to the 18-minute Rule' Gallo provides a step-by-step method that makes it possible for anyone to create, design, and deliver a TED-style presentation that is engaging, persuasive, and memorable. Ideas are the true currency of the 21st century, and Carmine Gallo’s Talk Like TED gives readers a way to create presentations around the ideas that matter most to them, presentations that will energize their audiences to spread those ideas, launch new initiatives, and reach their highest goals.

The Life and Science of Richard Feynman - by James Gleick

This book took a while to read, but it was worth the effort. I was only slightly familiar with Richard Feynman before, but now feel that I know him quite well. The book is an excellent balance between a discussion of him as a person and him as a scientist. The science is covered in a lot of detail at a level that I found accessible and interesting. From time to time the book goes off at a slight tangent and spends a few pages talking about one of his colleagues. As they were always of significance in his life, I found these interludes helpful and interesting.

By the end of the book, I was a little sad that Feynman is less of a household name than some other scientists of the 20th Century, with whom he was associated. Einstein, Dyson and Oppenheimer come to mind. I do feel that the author made a good effort to set the record straight.