Books

Books 2018: Finding Comfort in the Untangling of Mystery

Book(s): Agatha Christie’s Poirot Mysteries Author: Agatha Christie Review by: Leslie Gordon, director of the Rialto Center for the Arts at Georgia State University Lately I have escaped the endlessly dismaying news cycle by reading 35 of the 37 Agatha Christie Poirot mysteries. Stealing an hour for myself, I settle in a quiet place, my […]

Books 2018: How an ‘Ungentlemanly’ British Unit Showed Creativity Amid WWII Conflict

Book: Churchill’s Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare: The Mavericks Who Plotted Hitler’s Defeat Author: Giles Milton Reviewer: Christopher N. Smith, Attorney at Law & Honorary Consul of the Kingdom of Denmark. “Operation Postmaster” is a little-known piece of World War II history. This daring raid was conducted by the British Special Operations Executive (SOE) in 1942 in […]

Books 2018: Taming the ‘Unquiet Mind’

Book Title: An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness Author: Dr. Kay Redfield Jamison Book Review by: Jim Whitcomb, global finance executive An Unquiet Mind is a fascinating fast-paced journey through a very tumultuous period in the life of its author, Kay Redfield Jamison. Dr. Jamison shares with complete candor her personal experience […]

Books 2018: Civil War History in One Painting

Book: Near Andersonville Author: Peter H. Wood Review by: Philip P. Bolton, publisher of Global Atlanta Northern victory in the U.S. Civil War during the summer months of 1864 was far from assured. Even the re-election of President Abraham Lincoln was severely in doubt. Nor was Union Gen. William T. Sherman‘s capture of Atlanta guaranteed; […]

Books 2018: Music’s True Function Found in Old Greece

Book: Lament From Epirus: An Odyssey into Europe’s Oldest Surviving Folk Music Author: Christopher C. King Reviewed by: Glenn P. Hendrix, Chair, Arnall Golden Gregory LLP I’m a fan of the Oxford American magazine’s annual music issue, which comes with a complimentary music CD featuring all manner of Southern artists. The 2016 edition, titled “Visions of the Blues,” […]

Books 2018: Japanese Secrets to Long Life — Good Diet, Passionate Pursuits and Never Retiring

Book: Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life Authors: Héctor García and Francesc Miralles Review by: Sucheta Rawal, author, travel writer and founder of Go Eat Give, a nonprofit This summer, I was reading my newly released children’s book – Beato Goes To Japan at an event in Huntsville, Ala., when an audience member came […]

Books 2018: Coates on What It Really Means to Be Black in America

Book: We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy Author: Ta-Nehisi Coates Reviewed by Cedric L. Suzman, retired founding EVP & Program Director, World Affairs Council of Atlanta Ta-Nehisi Coates is a national correspondent for The Atlantic and this book is a collection of his essays, including his iconic “The Case for Reparations” that […]

Books 2018: How Ordinary People Can Make Extraordinary CEOs

Book: The CEO Next Door: The 4 Behaviors that Transform Ordinary People into World-Class Leaders Authors: Elena Botelho and Kim R. Powell Review by: Doug Shipman, CEO of the Woodruff Arts Center Many books on being a CEO are more pep-talk than guidebook, so I usually avoid reading them. And I must admit — the […]

Books 2018: In Pessimistic Age, Surprisingly Refreshing Facts About Human Progress

Book: Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress Author: Steven Pinker Review by: Martin Richenhagen, Chairman, CEO and President of AGCO Corp., a Duluth-based Fortune 500 agricultural equipment manufacturer Enlightenment Now is a transformative book that brings a much-needed sigh of relief, and perhaps a smile, to anyone concerned or even depressed […]

‘Bells of Peace’ to Toll on 11/11 for Both White and Black Georgian WW1 Dead

At precisely 11 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 11, bells and carillons across Georgia will be slowly ringing in commemoration of the 3,700 Georgians who died in World War One, “the War to End All Wars.” Virginia Dilkes, the daughter of a WW1 sergeant engineer, has spent countless hours contacting churches, legionnaire posts, universities, cemeteries and […]

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