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The book is a study of men in the Navy. They are far from the public eye, doing a job deemed essential by someone in Washington. They are essentially feared by the Chinese and despised by the American missionaries they come into contact with. It must have been a brutal emotional duty to carry out. Yet many men loved it. They spent their careers on the rivers and retired there when their time was up in the Navy.
Jake Holman, the central figure, is not better or worse than most other Sailors of that time. His motivation for joining the Navy were "...Army, Navy or reform school..." and so into the Navy he went. He is a competent machinest mate but has few real people skills. He is a loner on the outskirts of the Navy world. He has bounced from ship to ship and has now reached the end of the line. But even Holman makes friends in the ship as he tries to adapt to his surroundings.
It is an interesting look at the gunboat navy. The crew did military duties and drills but the day to day ship's husbandry were done by Chinese men. Is it any wonder the crew loved China duty once they got there.
One might say that the conclusion of the book is confusing and leaves you feeling troubled. Well it fits with the mission of the gunboat sailors and I think is perfect. Antiimperialists may condem the book and the subject but it was a real part of the American Navy and deserves to be remembered and respected.
And indeed this aspect of The Sand Pebbles is very well done. The whole book is worth reading just for one finely-crafted scene where the other sailors bet a foul-mouthed messmate he can't tell a story without cursing. He wins the bet, but on his own terms.
But there's more to this book then the lives a few seamen. It's about their interaction with the strange, wonderful Chinese civilization around them. And with China itself, which is, in a sense, the most important character in the book.
McKenna motivates this action by centering the book around an intelligent but half-educated hero, a rebellious man who joined the Navy to stay out of jail, and who transferred to the river patrol to escape from the hierarchy and rituals of ocean-going ships. Lacking his shipmates' contempt for the Chinese, he becomes fascinated with their lives and culture. This fascinatation become the source of many complicated interactions between him, his shipmates, and the Chinese, leading to friendship, love, conflict, and tragedy.
Another fascinating character is the boat's skipper, an aging Lieutenant Junior Grade. On one level, he is off-balance martinet, overly fond of military ritual, striving to achieve a strange personal state of grace -- with disasterous results. But he's also a keen observer of the events and people around him, and his inner conversations about them make for compelling reading.
Most people know this story from the Steve McQueen movie, which reduced all the complexity of McKenna's story to Vietnam-era historical guilt tripping. A pity, because this book contains much insight about the interaction between China and the west, an interaction to often reduced to simple political cliches.
Some of the appeal for me comes in identifying with Jake Holman. Where Jake begins with a love of machinery and an empowering mastery of it, I suppose to some part I originally felt the same way about computers and software. Jake transcends this, albeit tragically, in the book. Will you?
It's really good! Leah and Miguel want to tell Eight Prime about them but Miguel wimps out and refuses and they get into a big fight about it. Melanie and Peter start hanging out a lot, and Jenna gets majorly jealous. Ben's trying to fit in, and Nicoles just jealous of everything: Melanie, Leah...etc. Overall a very good book. Recommend you reading the whole series.
After several books at sea, "The Reverse of the Medal" brings readers back to the Admiralty in London with its complicated and layered intrigues, back to Ashgrove and Sophie, and back to Maturin's espionage machinations. As always, O'Brian's wonderfully intelligent prose and satisfying grasp of historical nuance captures the reader in little pockets of 18th-century Britain. The entire Aubrey/Maturin series is great, and this installment is no exception.
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Yet, as I read the book, I kept thinking, "He makes it sound so simple!" Any parent will tell you that disciplining children is not simple. And his methods don't always work. But I think this is a good starting place.
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Fuller did a great job in bringing an awareness of rankism, though I felt he did not let himself go completely in his writing. Though he argues that rank itself is not the problem, and that the abuse of rank is the culprit; I believe rank itself causes people to automatically abuse it--rankism. Yes, I agree that rank is important in a society but most people in our society have an ingrained belief that to have high rank automatically equals to have authority over someone, in that authority means that whoever is under you is obligated to do whatever you want. Buy this book,read it, and have your whole family, friends, and rankists in your life read it too.
This book clearly and powerfully puts into words an underlying issue that takes great courage to expose--that discrimination based on rank is no more justified than descrimination based on race or gender.
Throughout this book Fuller shows that he aims to protect others' dignity as he would his own.
Many thanks to both these authors for their contributions to my personal and professional life!
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I always wondered about the stories I would occasionally hear of an abusive meglomaniac, rather than a motivational messiah. The disciples on the testimonial videos seemed a little too robotic and rehearsed. So-called top producers closed offices and dropped out of sight.
Now comes the peek under Equinox's skirts provided by Rob Styler. When I go back to the old testimonial videos and see Rob spouting the company line, I almost feel sorry for him.
The book is great - a real page turner! A MUST for any fan of MLM.
Most mlm books are either pro-mlm or anti-mlm. Very few things are all good or all bad. This book shows both sides and exposes the reason for the eventual downfall of what once was the fastest growing company in America. It is a real eye opener for those folks who think that network marketing doesn't require any real work. It also shows you the warning signs of bad leadership.
Read, learn and enjoy! It's a real rollercoaster ride!
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Readers who wish to truly understand money, the economy, the stock and bond markets, and future investment trends should read this book. They should make sure their spouses and older children read it, too. I know I wish I had read it before the last bull market, and the correction in 2000.
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After reading the book for about 15 minutes, I tried the first exercise. My jaw felt immediate relief. I am very grateful for this book. It will certainly help in relieving pain and discomfort.
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Although "Power Golf for women" does address the anatomical differences that will affect a woman's swing, I believe the title of the book should have been "Power Golf". This book would benefit any male player and by directing it toward women the author has lost a good male audience.
Ms. Horn is without a doubt the first lady of golf instruction. However if she wants to become golf's next guru she's going to have to bridge the gender gap.