The Guatemala Reader: History, Culture, Politics Edited by Greg Grandin, Deborah Levenson & Elizabeth Oglesby Reviewed by Mark D. Walker The Guatemala Reader is an impressive compilation of 200 texts in a broad, comprehensive introduction to Guatemala’s history, culture, and politics. I wish I had this when I was a Peace Corps Volunteer in the early 70s, or when studying for my Masters at the Institute of Latin America at the University of Texas later in the decade, not to mention over eight years working with different organizations, as these materials provide a wealth of insights into the beauty and […]
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Book Review – Non-fiction: The Givers: Wealth, Power and Philanthropy in a New Gilded Age
The Givers: Wealth, Power and Philanthropy in a New Gilded Age by David Callahan Reviewed by Mark D. Walker This book provides an inside look at the secret world of elite philanthropists whose wealth has increased over the years and how they’re wielding increased power to influence American life in ways both positive and negative. My friend, Peter Nagle, the President of Carlton & Company where I’ve been a V.P. and Senior Counsel for many years, sent me the book because it “has a lot to tell us about major gifts, what is going on in the present day and […]
Continue readingBook Review – Non-fiction: The Gene: An Intimate History
The Gene: An Intimate History”by Siddhartha Mukherjee Reviewed by Mark D. Walker Interest in the power of the gene has heightened by the popularity of the numerous ancestry testing sites, like 23 & Me, which is the one I used to find out that I was 99% “Northwestern” European, which included Britain and Ireland (this would also include Scotland, which wasn’t a surprise) but the “Irish” ancestry was. The book provides a comprehensive history of the most intimate science of our time—the fundamentals of heredity. What better person to tell this story than the author of The Laws of Medicine […]
Continue readingBook Review – About Writing: The Business of Being a Writer
The Business of Being a Writer By Jane Friedman Reviewed by Mark D. Walker “Every writer needs tough love. Typically, that’s delivered by your editor as you’re writing the book. But where’s the tough love once your book is ready for the world? It’s in here and its Jane.” I learned about this book along with another, Daily Rituals, by Mason Curren from the speakers at a Phoenix Writers Network meeting several months ago. Curren’s book provides inspirational stories from writers, composers, artists and filmmakers on how the artists produce their creations, But then the question becomes, how do we […]
Continue readingBook Review – Non-fiction: The Age of Inequality: Corporate America’s War on Working People
The Age of Inequality: Corporate America’s War on Working People Edited by Jeremy Gantz Reviewed by Mark D. Walker A culmination of forty years of reporting by investigative reporters and progressive thinkers focuses on one of the key issues of our time, a steady movement towards an oligarchy in which ever more resources are being concentrated in an every smaller segment of our population. The richest 1 percent of Americans now own more wealth than the bottom 90%, while the country’s median household income is less today than it was in 1989. The great struggles of U.S. history, from the […]
Continue readingBook Review – Travel: The Tao of Travel: Enlightenments from Lives on the Road
The Tao of Travel: Enlightenments from Lives on the Road By Paul Theroux Reviewed by Mark D. Walker This book celebrates 50 years of travel writing and is just one of the reasons Theroux is known as the “Godfather of contemporary travel writing”. It’s an invaluable portal into the world of timeless travel on a global scale by one of the great travel authors. Theroux shares some of the books and authors who influenced and inspired him. He intersperses selections from his many books as well as those of the best travelers like Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, Graham Greene, James […]
Continue readingBook Review – Fiction: Speak from Your Heart and Be Heard
Speak from Your Heart and Be Heard By Dr. Kixx Goldman Reviewed by Mark D. Walker I’ve known the author for several years through our involvement with several writing groups including the Phoenix Writers Club and the Phoenix Writers Network because she’s bringing her considerable experience as a psychologist to help her readers deal with the complicated realms of truth, emotion, trauma and healing. Fortunately, she followed Tony Morrison’s challenge,”if there’s a book you really want to read but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it” a valuable mantra for any writer. The author often reiterates one […]
Continue readingBook Review – Latin America: Silence on the Mountain: Stories of Terror, Betrayal, and Forgetting in Guatemala
Silence on the Mountain: Stories of Terror, Betrayal, and Forgetting in Guatemala By Daniel Wilkinson Reviewed by Mark D. Walker While researching for a documentary on the immigration crisis in Guatemala, I came across the reference of this book being one of the best books on the Guatemalan civil war, which lasted thirty-six-years and claimed some 200,000 people, the vast majority of whom died (or “disappeared”) at the hands of a U.S.-backed military government. The title sounded familiar, so I checked out my bookshelves and, low-and-behold, it surfaced and I’m so glad it did. The author was a young human […]
Continue readingBook Review – Fiction: SAY HER NAME
A BOOK REVIEW OF SAY HER NAME By Francisco Goldman Reviewed by Mark D. Walker An evocative story of love and loss by acclaimed author Francisco Goldman who marries Mexican writer Aura Estrada. Tragically, a month before their second wedding anniversary, Aura breaks her neck body surfing. In order to deal with the loss and a deep-seated feeling of guilt, Goldman wrote this novel chronicling his love and feelings of unspeakable loss, which reflect the stages of grief when love and passion give way to inexplicable pain. The author traces every memory from his loved one’s memory and university days […]
Continue readingBook Review – Non-fiction: Sapiens: A Brief History of Mankind
Sapiens: A Brief History of Mankind By Yuval Noah Harari Reviewed by Mark D. Walker The author takes us on a sweeping trek through the history of our species. His encyclopedic approach covers most of the great turning points of mankind, the agricultural revolution, scientific revolution and what unifies mankind. The author’s all-encompassing perspective is summarized as, “One hundred thousand years ago, at least six human species inhabited the earth. Today there is just one. Us. Homo sapiens. This opens some very interesting questions, which the author deals with, like how did our species succeed and become dominant. Why did […]
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