It Happened Right Here: America's Pop Culture Landmarks (Chris Epting)

Like Chris Epting, I've always been interested in learning where a big event happened. There's just something about standing in the spot of a big cultural "happening" that is profound to me. I was a big fan of Epting's books in the early 2000s -- James Dean Died Here, Elvis Presley Passed Here, and Marilyn Monroe Dyed Here -- so I was happy to see that he finally came out with another book of this type, It Happened Right Here: America's Pop Culture Landmarks.

If you've ever wanted to find out exactly where big events in music, sports, history, etc. happened, this is your book. Want to know where the house made famous in the Brady Bunch is? Or the dorm room where Facebook was created? It's all in here. What's always most exciting about Epting's books for me is finding out things that happened where I lived. Who knew that I lived very close to where Babe Ruth might have hit baseball's longest ever home run?

If you're at all interested in pop culture, It Happened Right Here is a fascinating read. I strongly recommend any of Epting's books.

MY RATING - 4

The LEGO Story: How a Little Toy Sparked the World's Imagination (Jens Andersen)

Over 80 million kids around the globe receive a box of LEGO blocks annually. LEGO has grown over the decades from a wood toy shop in Denmark into the plastic brick and play material enterprise that is known worldwide. Jens Andersen chronicles the history of LEGO and the family ownership that has driven its growth and success in The LEGO Story: How a Little Toy Sparked the World’s Imagination.

The town of Billund, Denmark, is the home of LEGO. The LEGO Story chronicles the relationship that the company, the Kirk Christiansen family that has owned and steered the company for decades, and the town have had with each other. LEGO wasn’t always successful, suffering through financial crunches and struggles at various times throughout its history. Like any successful family-controlled business, its ability to adapt in bad times and to generational leadership changes has been critical to its success. While forays into hybrid wood and plastic toys and amusement parks ultimately fell by the wayside, LEGO’s ability to pivot to plastic bricks and strategically grow its brand have steered it to become a billion dollar, international enterprise.

Any business lessons to be gleaned through the book are picked up between the lines; however, the book’s history does provide a narrative that shows how a successful enterprise was able to grow and adapt over time. Those lessons, while not screaming at the reader, are easy to see in this historical narrative of a childhood favorite.

MY RATING - 4

For Profit: A History of Corporations (William Magnuson)

Over time, corporations have grown in size and influence, generating massive amounts of wealth in many cases while “moving fast and breaking things” in others. The history of corporations dates back to before the Roman Empire and have evolved from being private-public partnerships to private entities that generally benefit society at large. In For Profit: A History of Corporations, William Magnuson discusses the history of corporations from their incorporation as a concept in the Roman Republic.

Initially, corporations were established to help the Roman Republic with services and projects by wealthy individuals who teamed up with others to provide capital and resources to Rome as a means to help them in their battles against enemies outside of the Republic’s growing boundaries. Corporations have evolved since then; Magnuson looks at eight examples of different companies and how they impacted both the greater population and the evolution of business. Those impacts changed over time, from the benevolence of the Medici family in Florence to the monies given by Rockerfeller and Carnegie for public libraries and other civic projects. However, Magnuson argues that corporations haven’t always behaved admirably over time.

Magnuson closes the book by arguing for a number of steps that corporations can take to reclaim a spirit of civic virtue, similar to “stakeholder capitalism” that you may hear about in the media. While some of the suggestions are noble if not altruistic, some (such as treating workers right) are common sense approaches that should be adhered to. Magnuson’s book is a concise snapshot of the evolution of corporations over time.

MY RATING - 4

Brotherhood of the Flying Coffin: The Glider Pilots of World War II (Scott McGaugh)

The Waco CG-4A was a military glider that was used by the Americans in World War II to carry troops and cargo behind enemy lines while also taking out enemy military installations. These planes could fly independently or get towed behind a larger cargo plane and were used to carry out high-risk military operations. They became known as “flying coffins” because of the risk of being shot out of the sky, or simply crashing due to turbulence and weather. Scott McGaugh captures the stories of these brave men who flew in these planes in Brotherhood of the Flying Coffin: The Glider Pilots of World War II. 

McGaugh’s book goes into detail about the use of these military gliders in the European theater of World War II, as well as the stories of those who flew in these risky missions from their debut in Sicily in 1943 to their final use in the late stages of World War II in 1945. Their most critical contributions arguably occurred in the Battle of the Bulge, delivering medical goods and gasoline to troops that were surrounded by Germans.

McGaugh highlights the stories of these battle-tested individuals, bringing to the forefront unsung and often anonymous individuals who contributed to the Allied victory in Europe. His detailed analysis of their contributions, along with transcribed oral histories, brings to life another chapter in the history of World War II.

MY RATING - 4

Bookshop by the Sea (Denise Hunter)

When I see the word "bookshop" in a book title, it's usually an automatic read for me. These types of bookd usually involve romance (like one of my favorites - How to Find Love in a Bookshop by Veronica Henry) and the much of the action takes place in, well, a bookshop. Denise Hunter's Bookshop by the Sea adds a third intriguing factor to these books -- the sea. But unlike others, it didn't resonate as well with me.

The book begins at Sophie Lawson's sister's wedding, where Sophie sees the best man (and her ex-boyfriend), Aiden, again. Years ago, Aiden moved away to start his own business, leaving Sophie to take care of her sick mother and two younger siblings. Sophie's dream was always to open a bookshop in a beach town, but she needed to put her dreams aside to take care of her family. Now years later, it's finally time to pursue her dream when Aiden enters the picture again. 

Bookshop by the Sea suffers from too many implausible scenarios. How much bad luck can happen to one person in the span of a few weeks? Plus, I felt the title was misleading. While some of the book is about Sophie opening her bookshop, much of it takes place away from there. All in all, this book was just ok for me.

MY RATING - 2.5

The Peaceful Transfer of Power: An Oral History of America's Presidential Transitions (David Marchick, Alexander Tippett, and A.J. Wilson)

The transition of the American presidency from one administration to another has been a peaceful, if not always smooth nor efficient, process where one President and their staff leave the White House and a new administration is set up to take their place. Ronald Reagan called this process nothing less than a miracle given you have just over 70 days between Election Day and January 20th to set up a wholly new administration and be ready to run on Day 1. Over 4000 political appointees are brought in to replace the prior administration’s crew of appointees. It’s a huge task and comes with risk to our nation’s security. 

David Marchick, Alexander Tippett, and A.J. Wilson interviewed several individuals who studied historical presidential transfers of power, as well as current government officials responsible for it, in The Peaceful Transfer of Power: An Oral History of America’s Presidential Transitions. The book provides a historical look at how the transfer of presidential power has evolved over time, how nominated candidates for the White House are now beginning the process of setting up their administration months in advance of Election Day (win or lose), and how the best laid plans for transition of power can be tossed into a dumpster at the whim of a winning candidate’s inner circle.

These interviews share much about the lessons learned with modern presidential transitions, as well as provide important insights about how involved and detailed the process of setting up a new government in a short period of time really is. The Peaceful Transfer of Power reminds readers that the presidency is a serious job and requires the right planning, support, and leadership from the presidential candidate and their inner circle to effectively transition…and even then, it won’t be perfect.

MY RATING - 4

The Forest of Vanishing Stars (Kristin Harmel)

For me, the gold standard for World War II novels in the historical fiction genre are Krisin Hannah's The Nightingale and Tatiana de Rosnay's Sarah's Key. By gold standard, I'm talking about books that leave a mark on your soul. The Forest of Vanishing Stars is my first introduction to author Kristin Harmel. It's a worthwhile read but one that doesn't quite match the profundity of the other two books I mentioned.

The story begins with a very young Yona being kidnapped from her German parents by a very old woman. She is raised in the forest and left completely alone when the woman dies. But that changes when she comes across a group of Jews in the forest who are trying to escape the Nazi regime. Yona teaches the group what she knows about living in the forest until her past comes back to haunt her in a big way.

The Forest of Vanishing Stars is well-researched (as the author note describes) and inspired by true events. There are times when it is very moving and suspenseful. The love stories interspersed between the stories of survival take away from the novel a bit for me, but it is still worh reading. I will definitely read more by this author.

MY RATING - 3.5