The First 90 Days, Updated and Expanded: Critical Success Strategies for New Leaders at All Levels by Michael D. Watkins My rating: 3 of 5 stars An ok book – it rambles a lot at times, but there are some very clear tools which are useful. I was expecting a book that was very distinct … Read More
Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown My rating: 4 of 5 stars While there isn’t a lot of extremely new material here, it gives actual practical tips and exercises which were new. Simple changes in perspective. I very much liked that it did not waste time with endless ‘talk’ about proving a … Read More
The End of Power: From Boardrooms to Battlefields and Churches to States, Why Being In Charge Isn’t What It Used to Be by Moisés Naím My rating: 2 of 5 stars Perhaps one of the hardest books I’ve ever tried to get through. Perhaps it was because I listened to the audio book and the … Read More
Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage by Haruki Murakami My rating: 1 of 5 stars Perhaps one of the worst books I have read. I have heard great things about Haruki Murakami, so when this came out, I was excited to read a novel of his for the first time. It was disappointing. … Read More
Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything by Joshua Foer My rating: 5 of 5 stars Without a doubt, one of the best books I have read in recent years. It was on Bill Gates site in 2012 — this book recommendation, is yet another reason I’ve always been such a big … Read More
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable by Patrick Lencioni My rating: 2 of 5 stars I’ve seen this book on so many ‘management’ lists, I finally decided to read it now that I’m taking up a new team. I wish I could find all the people who recommended this book as a … Read More
This month — yet another favorite but with a twist… cabbage rolls but with beans 🙂 — I’m sure everyone is excited about that! For the past couple months, I’ve been upping my fibre (fiber?) intake and lowering my sugar intake, and I’m a fan of refried beans, so figured this would be a good experiment … Read More
Zero Gravity: Riding Venture Capital from High-Tech Start-up to Breakout IPO I read this book years ago when it first came out (in 2000). I sometimes like to read these types of books again, just to gain perspective. There is so much in this book that is just second nature to people now such as … Read More
How Soccer Explains the World: An Unlikely Theory of Globalization by Franklin Foer My rating: 2 of 5 stars The first couple of chapters were easy reads, but then it seems to just continue along the same lines. Too much of it seemed to be based on unsubstantiated theories – like Iran’s Khatemi’s unlikely victory … Read More
I am a huge fan of A Shadow of a Wind – I always recommend it to anyone I know going to Barcelona. So after seeing Carlos Ruiz Zafón, speaking at the local Indigo talking about his second book, I was immediately had it on my list of must reads. And just like SOTW, the … Read More