10.04.16
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MILLER’S VALLEY/ ANNA QUINDLEN

” But no one ever leaves the town where they grew up, not really, even if they go.”  In those key strokes Anna Quindlen, through the voice of  Mimi, Miller’s Valley protagonist, speaks for everyone who hails from small town rural America.

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Miller’s Valley reads with an easy cadence.  ” Oh, I get that, I know him he’s just like… she reminds me of…. ” I said to myself over and over, as Miller’s Valley unfolded  on pages that turned easily and eagerly.

In every small town there exists a mystery behind every doorway and in Miller’s Valley the secrets play out at kitchen tables, barns and where else but at the local diner. The book reads like a memoir. It is both predictable and unpredictable in a perfect blend.

Anna Quindlen was a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist while at the New York Times. Her memoir Lots of Candles Plenty of Cake published in 2012 was a  number one New York Times bestseller.

Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

09.15.16
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HACKING BEFORE THE COMPUTER AGE/ CODE WARRIORS/ STEPHEN BUDIANSKY

Stephen Budiansky’s scholarly book CODE WARRIORS, NSA’S CODEBREAKERS AND THE SECRET INTELLIGENCE WAR AGAINST THE SOVIET UNION is a detailed history of the NSA and the historical herculean and expensive effort to crack the codes and cyphers of the enemies of America dating back to pre WWII.  From the successful breaking of the German Enigma code to intercepting and deciphering war-time radio signals, Code Warriors details the massive U.S. intelligence  gathering mechanism that blossomed into a billions of dollars bureaucracy complete with the intrigue of politics, fighting factions and competing egos.

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Budiansky’s impeccable research sets the stage for today’s headlines as the world of hacking and high speed computers has replaced machines that mechanically spun alphabetical and numbered wheels to crack codes of friends and enemies alike.  The author’s pages are not always kind to the  NSA or the CIA.

It almost seems simplistic  that America once constructed huge antenna arrays worldwide to capture information  sometimes with questionable legality. Early satellites intercepted radio signals and a tunnel under the Berlin Wall tapped into Soviet communications.  America spent additional billions safeguarding its own classified military and diplomatic messaging but the Soviets kept pace and the information race equalled the arms race. It all came under the umbrella of signals intelligence.

While Alan Turing and a staff of hundreds took months to crack the German codes at Bletchley Park, today lone wolf hackers invade secret government and private  files with the impunity of key strokes.

Budiansky details the NSA’s obsession with capturing every possible syllable of signal intelligence and then attempting to decipher and make sense of all of the information. The book begs the question as to whether NSA codebreakers have also become hackers as the narrative  transcends  current events.

Code Warrior’s is  valiant in its effort to make highly technical material  understandable for the layman and place the subject in the context of its vital importance in the major world events of the past seventy-five years.

Stephen Budiansky also wrote Blackett’s War and Perilous Fight.

 

 

 

 

 

09.09.16
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MARIO CUOMO/ NEW FROM WILLIAM O’SHAUGHNESSY/ A TIMELY LOOK BACK

Mario Cuomo called him “Brother Bill.”  Therefore, who better than William O’Shaughnessy to publish MARIO CUOMO, Remembrances of  a Remarkable Man.  The book captures their personal relationship  and the unique openness between them. The author shares countless previously unpublished interviews with Mario Cuomo both before and after his  governorship. The author peels back the pages of many of Cuomo’s most remarkable speeches,  delivered by the person who is deemed the best political orator of his day. O’Shaughnessy bares personal witness to Mario Cuomo’s interactions with the famous and less famous.

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O’Shaughnessy has always possessed an impeccable sense of timing. After all he is a radio guy, a medium that lives in the present.  We are  currently in the moment of a political  campaign for the leadership of the free world where neither candidate is trusted by a majority of the American people. The word “orator” will find no place in the newspeak of today. To the contrary, O’Shaughnessy’s  Mario Cuomo reads as a tribute to trustworthiness, statesmanship, vision, empathy, oratory, gravitas and grace. Cuomo’s words leap from the tome’s pages with themes of a “higher calling.”  The book begs the question; What happened to our national discourse?

Mario Cuomo is filled with anecdotal insight into the governor, his friends, his day-to-day, his family and his lifestyle  evolving into a tableau describing why he was admired by millions and loved by those closest to him. Will we see the likes of Mario Cuomo again? O’Shaughnessy is hopeful.

William O’Shaughnessy is president and editorial director of Whitney Media. He has written four other books: Vox Populi, More Riffs, Rants, and Raves, It All Comes Back to Me Now and Airwaves.

 

 

 

09.08.16
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A MAN AND HIS MEDIUM/ ALAN HENRY WITH GORDON HASTINGS

I must explain first that I proudly worked closely with Alan Henry in writing this memoir. It was an inspiration to learn his life story and help define his lasting impact on the broadcasting industry. This is not simply a book about broadcasting. It is much more than that because it speaks of a time when young people with a passion could find supportive and helping hands to launch their career.

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The broadcasting industry is approaching the 100th anniversary of the birth of America’s first commercial radio station, KDKA, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. KDKA signed on the air on November 20, 1920.

Emerging through the haze of broadcasting history come the names of individuals that transformed the emerging new technologies of radio and television into broadcast programming that attracted hundreds of millions of listeners and viewers.

Entertainment programming came to the new radio medium inherited from the vaudeville stage. Long form dramatic shows followed including scripted programs like Lux Radio Theater and comedies that included Amos and Andy and Burns and Allen. There were westerns Tom Mix, The Lone Ranger, Roy Rogers and dozens of crime shows including the FBI in Peace and War, The Shadow and Mr. and Mrs. North. It was radio’s Golden Age.

When television exploded in American homes during the 1950s radio needed to reinvent itself by creating new and appealing programs and approaches to position itself for the future. Many stations adopted a Rock & Roll music format while others took a more adventurous, riskier and innovative approach and created what later became All News and Talk Radio.

This is the untold story of Alan Henry, a young boy left on a relative’s doorstep at an early age whom through self reliance, grit and imagination grew to be among America’s most successful radio and television broadcast entrepreneurs, innovators and executives.

Alan Henry took high risks to help create programming that is today universal across all media. Over the decades these formats have launched thousands of individual careers in radio, television, cable television and the Internet.

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Alan Henry’s legacy has left an indelible mark on how Americans use the broadcast media in the 21st century. The book is available now at amazon.com and can be obtained through your local bookstore.

 

08.17.16
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NEVER TOO LATE TO FIND A GREAT SUMMER READ

Summer is fleeting but this flashback to the 1950s will be a great ending to your summer reading.  Edna Ferber’s Giant is my recommendation for a last-minute wrap on summer.

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A great novelist, a wonderful story with unforgettable characters that can only be found in West Texas. Even if you’ve seen the movie a dozen times, read the book.

08.11.16
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ALAN HENRY/ A MAN AND HIS MEDIUM/COMING SOON

Coming soon at Amazon.com the untold story of how Talk Radio, All News Radio and Talk Television developed from its early beginnings. Who first said, ” Go gargle with razor blades?”  Find out in A Man and His Medium.

 

51545108_High Resolution Front Cover_6425892The broadcasting industry is approaching the hundredth anniversary of the birth of America’s first commercial radio station, KDKA, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. KDKA signed on the air on November 20, 1920.Emerging through the haze of broadcasting history come the names of individuals who transformed the developing technologies of radio and television into broadcast programming that attracted hundreds of millions of listeners and viewers.

Entertainment programming inherited from the vaudeville stage came to the new radio medium. Long-form dramatic shows followed, including scripted programs like Lux Radio Theater and comedies that included Amos and Andy and Burns and Allen. There were westerns, such as Tom Mix, The Lone Ranger, and Roy Rogers, and dozens of crime shows, including the FBI in Peace and War, The Shadow, and Mr. and Mrs. North. It was radio’s Golden Age.

When television exploded in American homes during the 1950s, radio needed to reinvent itself by creating new, appealing programs and approaches in order to position itself for the future. Many stations adopted a rock ’n’ roll music format. Others took a more adventurous, riskier, and more innovative approach and created what later became All News and Talk Radio.

This is the untold story of Alan Henry, a young boy left on a relative’s doorstep at an early age, who, through self-reliance, grit, and imagination, grew to be among America’s most successful radio- and television-broadcast entrepreneurs, innovators, and executives. Alan Henry took high risks to help create programming that is today universal across all media. Over the decades, these formats have launched thousands of individual careers in radio, on television, on cable television, and on the Internet.

Alan Henry’s legacy has left an indelible mark on how Americans use the broadcast media in the twenty-first century.

 

05.10.16
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THE NIGHTINGALE/KRISTIN HANNAH

There is little wonder why The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah has received acclaim.  The  novel  is a great read, indeed a page turner, reminding me of Doerr’s All The Light We Can Not See.

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The Nightingale translates the horror of German occupied France during WW II.  It is a hero’s worship of the French Resistance, of brave women and men fighting their occupiers against all odds. There are victories,  losses, triumphs and tragedies but throughout the pages evolves a love story, and a reconciliation between sisters, a father and daughter.  The war brings people together and simultaneously tears them apart. A tale of survival, brilliant  storytelling, riveting to the end.

As is my want  on this blog I will give no more detail about this story other  than to encourage you to enjoy.  The Nightingale is very much  another of  Gordon’s Good Reads.

A selection of additional books by Kristin Hannah include Fly Away, The Things We Do For Love, Once in Every Life, and A Handful of Heaven.

04.27.16
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PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY/ ANATOMY OF AN EPIDEMIC

Robert Whitaker’s  2010 book Anatomy of an Epidemic is written with attitude. Even if only half of the hypothesis developed in Whitaker’s  examination of the effects psychiatric drugs  on adults and children is accurate, this book is an essential and illuminating read.

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Whitaker leaves no doubt that the prescribing of an antidepressant drugs for both adults and children is of epidemic proportions in America.  He makes the case that there is no scientific evidence that mental disorders are caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain. The pharmaceutical industry continues to promote “magic bullets”  designed to alter the brain’s chemical balance, treating mental illness as a disease.

Research compiled by Whitaker documents that the long-term effects of the use of antidepressants cause permanent  brain damage rather than provide any definable  cure. He questions the entire efficacy of the use of drug therapy in the treatment of mental illness.  He advances a conspiracy theory between the drug manufacturers and the marketing of the “magic bullets” to patients desperate for answers for themselves and their children.

The most frightening conclusion proffered by  Anatomy of an Epidemic is that long-term recovery rates for persons with mental disorders are better for those who have not been subjected to any form drug therapy.

Just like the book, ” In a Different Key, The Story of  Autism ( See Gordonsgood Reads February posting), Anatomy of an Epidemic is an essential read for anyone concerned with examining a different narrative about the treatment of mental illness.

Robert Whitaker also authored Mad in America. He is a journalist and investigative reporter who has specialized in the area of mental health. His numerous articles and books have been the recipients of several awards including a Pulitzer finalist for investigative reporting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

03.26.16
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ROGUE LAWYER/PURE ENJOYMENT/CONTEMPORARY ISSUES

It took only three sittings to race through John Grisham’s latest novel Rogue Lawyer.  I wasn’t in a particular rush but like so much of his work it was hard to put down. I especially liked Rogue Lawyer because it added a few edgy contemporary issues.

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” A lawyer like me is forced to work in the shadows. My opponents are protected by badges, uniforms, and all the myriad trappings of government power. They are a sworn and duty-bound to uphold the law, but since they cheat like hell it forces me to cheat even more.”

The story of the middle of the night police invasion of a private home is frightening and carries a familiar ring of cable news.   Your mind may chill with images of  surplus Army tanks, Kevlar and night vision goggles on the streets of local communities. The book has a menu other cases, characters and  clients.

John Grisham’s Rogue Lawyer is indeed a good read. For other great Grisham novels search gordonsgoodreads.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

03.26.16
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THE WITCHES- SALEM 1692. NON FICTION? YOUR CALL

Stacy Schiff’s The Witches, Salem 1692 is a work of non fiction by the acclaimed Pulitzer Prize winning author and historian.

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For the reader, the vivid descriptions of the Salem Witch Trials is difficult to separate from a historical novel. The task for Schiff was to work from difficult to discover and even harder to discern documentation of what actually occurred during that bitter-cold winter of 1692 in Salem, Massachusetts.

Like several readers I spoke with, some of whom gave up early with these pages, I found it difficult to keep engaged with the flow of the story.  The book is certainly a statement of the times and the confluence of strident religious beliefs, hard living on the first American frontier and plenty of hard cider fueling wild imagination.

The Witches is a must read for students of  witchcraft and for understanding the period and a very strange social order. Allow yourself plenty of time for taking  many necessary page-backs before you mount a broom yourself and fly away in frustration.

Also by Stacy Schiff: Cleopatra.