The Fourth Revolution by Micklethwait, Wooldridge

This book's full title is The Fourth Revolution: The Global Race to Reinvent the State by Adrian Wooldridge and John Micklethwait. You have to wonder if the Western countries like the US can really reform its government. I found it interesting in any event. I like to read books of authors with views that a very different from mine. However, at least these guys are thinking about how we can have better government.

I think that democracy in the Western world is in some trouble. We are highly in debt and politicians will not make any tough decisions. People seem polarized. US seem to be going with demagogues like South America and we know how that turns out. In Canada if you mention anything even slightly positive about Harper to any slightly left wing person the reaction is so extremely you would think that they are going to have a heart attack.

There is some good reviews on Good Reads. I very much like to review by Rosa Brooks at the NY Times.

There is an interview of the authors by Charlie Rose. There is a discussion about this book called Big Thinkers by Institute for Government.

Also, an index of the books I have reviewed are on my website at Books. Follow me on Twitter.

Prisoners of Geography by Tim Marshall

This book's full title is Prisoners of Geography, Ten Maps That Explain Everything About the World (or Geopolitics, if you are European). This is a delightful book and an interesting perspective on history and different countries. However, it is hard to believe that we human cannot get past the barriers that geography has thrown up for us.

Certainly, you can see how difficult it is with all the wars that seem to go on all the time. I do not believe there has been any year when the world has seen no war. This book is very readable and gives you a good idea of the geopolitics of our age.

There is a good review of this book by Daniel Dombey on Financial Times. It also brings up the point that geography is not everything. Of course, geography is not everything, but it can explain lots of things. As always, there are some really good reviews on Good Reads.

There is a BBC interview of Tim Marshall. There is a talk about this book by Tim Marshall on Vimeo. He talks about how geopolitics has changed our world. Kath Gerbeau interviews Tim Marshall. This is a short and just over 5 minute interview.

Also, an index of the books I have reviewed are on my website at Books. Follow me on Twitter.

The Revenge of Geography by Robert Kaplan

This book's full title is The Revenge of Geography: What the map tells us about the coming conflicts and the ballet against fate.

In the opening he talks about the fact that there are worse things than communism and totalitarianism. That is a situation with no one in charge. To explore this subject more, you can read Better Angels of Our Nature by Steven Pinker. I have a review of this book on this site.

He has a lot of interesting things to say about America including the fact that one reason it prospered was because it was the last great tract of land in the temperate zone. There is not much land in the temperate zone in the southern hemisphere, especially in South America.

I think that listening to and seeing speeches by authors I read, enhances my understanding of what I read. You hear, see and read what an author has to say. So this enhances my understanding and enjoyment of the books that I read. I must admit I really like to see people speak, rather than listen to audio media. I find the speeches more interesting.

There is an article by Kaplan connected to this book at University of Colorado. Kaplan has his own at site. There is a lot of great articles he wrote on this site.

The Center for a New American Security (CNAS) hosted the book launch for The Revenge of Geography on YouTube. On this program David Ignatius, Associate Editor and Columnist at The Washington Post, interviewed Kaplan. There is a 30 minute interview followed at the 35 minute mark by Q&A with the audience. You can see a short review version of that at 7 minutes .

Marines' memorial association meeting and uploaded by World Affairs Council is a speech by Robert Kaplan. Kaplan's speech starts about 9 minutes in. His speech is to the 48 minute mark and then there are questions.

There is a radio interview by NPR. After being introduced, Kaplan talks for about 5 minutes and then questions are taken by him to answer. People are phoning in with their questions.

And, if you really want to read a print review, there is a good one at The Wall Street Journal. The value of print reviews is that you get a different view point from the author's. However, a lot of people disagree with the negative view Felipe Fernandez-Armesto has of this book. The book review at Good Reads is much more upbeat about this book.

Also, an index of the books I have reviewed are on my website at Books. Follow me on Twitter.

A History of the World in 12 Maps by Jerry Brotton

This book's title is "A History of the World in 12 Maps". The book is a rather interesting way to cover a lot of history. It was rather a tough book to read. I find myself getting bogged down in parts, but I pushed through it and I was glad I did.

As usual there are some good reviews on Amazon if you care to scroll down to the section called Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com. As always, the Telegraph has a good review. This one is by Noel Malcolm. There is also a review in the Boston Globe by Matthew Price.

There is a good and quite short interview with Jerry Brotton on BBC. On YouTube Jerry Brotton gives a short review of his book. There is a longer video of Jerry Brotton talking about maps after being introduced by Steve Chilton at University College London. It is a longer version of the earlier YouTube talk, but I think that the subject is covered better and quicker in the earlier YouTube video. This is a very interesting question and answer video with Jerry Brotton also on YouTube. However, this last video is off the subject of the book.

On my website is how to find this book on Amazon if you care to purchase it. See Brotton. Also, this book review and other books I have reviewed are on my website at Book Reviews.

The Triple Package by Chua and Rubenfeld

This book’s full title is “The Triple Package: How Three Unlikely Traits Explain the Rise and Fall of Cultural Groups in America”, by Amy Chua and Jed Rubenfeld. They talk about three cultural traits that make certain groups in the US very successful. These groups have a superiority complex, they are insecure and they value impulse control. It is quite an interesting book on American successful groups and why they are successful. It was an interesting point of view.

I often start off to read book reviews on Amazon. You have to scroll down a bit to find them, but they are often worthwhile. There is a good review of this book at the New Republic by William Deresiewicz. This review is probably the best one, but there is also one in the Telegraph by Allison Pearson. I generally like the Telegraph reviews, but this one did not seem to have anything interesting or critical to say about the book.

At Politics and Prose bookstore Amy Chua and Jed Rubenfeld have a chance to speak about their book. This video is almost one hour long. There is a shorter just over 15 minute talk by the authors at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. This talk covers a lot of what was talked about at Politics and Prose. The interview at Book TV After Words have the authors talk about the three qualities discussed in the book.

On my website is how to find this book on Amazon if you care to purchase it. See Chua, Rubenfeld. Also, this book review and other books I have reviewed are on my website at Book Reviews.

The Power of Why by Amanda Lang

This book's title is "The Power of Why" by Amanda Lang. On the cover David Chilton the author of The Wealthy Barer Returns says "The Power of Why changes the way you think.... This is truly a great book". She talks about we should not shrink from problems but treat them as intriguing challenges.

As usual there is some good reviews on this book at Amazon. You have to scroll down to the customer reviews half way down the page. There is also quite a good review of this book by Jay Robb.

There is an interview of Amanda Lang by Peter Mansbridge. This is an interview just over 20 minutes. There is a very short introduction at Rotman School by Amanda Lang.

On my website is how to find this book on Amazon if you care to purchase it. See Lang. Also, this book review and other books I have reviewed are on my website at Book Reviews.

Champlain's Dream by David Hackett Fischer

This book's full title is Champlain's Dream: The Visionary Adventurer who Made a New World in Canada. The author is David Hackett Fischer. I have read other histories of the French in Canada, but presented in an interesting and very different manner. French history in Canada has, of course, talked about Champlain, but I had never read a book just about him. He was a much more interesting character than I had imagined.

I read a paperback version, so there are no recent reviews. There was a good review in the G&M by Jeffrey Simpson in 2009. There is an early one praising the author in the New York Times by Max Boot.

There is an interview of David Hackett Fischer through Random House on YouTube. In this video David Hackett Fischer talks about what drew him to Champlain and his research experiences. This is short video of some 6 minutes. There is also a talk by Fischer at the College of the Atlantic of Maine. This video is 1 and one half hours. His talk starts just over 4 minutes into the video.

On my website is how to find this book on Amazon if you care to purchase it. See Fischer. Also, this book review and other books I have reviewed are on my website at Book Reviews.