Great Descriptions, Weak Prescriptions
598713
Mann and Ornstein, two of the savviest assessors of recent American governance, provide a stunningly dismal assessment of current-day governance. This political dysfunction they call "asymmetric polarization," with Republicans the primary culprits for implacably refusing to support anything that might help Democrats politically no matter the cost to American society.

  They give credit to the Democrats for, despite steadfast Republican oppostion, "an impressive legislative harvest" during President Obama's first two years. After Republican 2010 electoral success, Mann and Ornstein characterize the outcome as "an appalling spectacle of hostage-taking--most importantly the debt ceiling crisis-that threatened a government shutdown and public default, led to a downgrading of the country's credit, and blocked constructive action to nurture an economic recovery or deal with looming problems of deficits and debt."

  The authors chastize the media for failing to highlight the role of Republicans in reaching this current appalling situation. They castigate the Republicans for perils-of-Pauline tactics on what historically has been a relatively placid vote on raising the debt ceiling. They view with alarm the "Young Guns' in Congress who are led by Majority Leader Eric Cantor. They are distressed by Republican Senate filibusters and House Republicans eschewing anything that smacked of compromise.

  Mann and Ornstein trace "the seeds of dysfunction" back to Newt Gingrich and his strategy "to destroy the institution [Congress] in order to save it." This has contributed to a growing polical polarization in which moderates, either Democratic or Republican, are becoming a nearly extinct species. They comment on how this polarization is increasingly reflected in cable television, on blogs, and on YouTube. Fox News, more profitable than the three network news divisions combined, is at least partly responsbile for this asymmetric portrayal. The 5-4 Supreme Court decision on Citizens United is a likely major contributor to further polarization.

  After providing chapter and verse on why "it's even worse than it looks," the authors endeavor to provide a series of positive prospects that could ameliorate the current dismal situation. I shan't bother to catalogue these. Within a bipartisan environment, some of their recommendations might seem worth considering. However, under the current imbroglio that they so fulsomely describe, I don't imagine that Mann and Ornstein believe that any of their recommendations have the chance of a snow ball in hell. My instinct is that their publisher implored them to provide 'some solutions.'

  My impressison is that American politics is experiencing the culmination of the Republican extremism that was evidenced by New Gingrich and the Congress of 1994. Until or unless there is some systemic revolution that prompts a return to a manner of bipartisan compromises for the good of American society, 'solutions' provided by skilled political scientists seem for naught.
3236052
I found a wealth of information here, but it is mostly simple information organized as a list in alphabetical order. I felt that something was lacking, perhaps an introduction on how to use the book and when you should go to the doctor. Many of these conditions are not do-it-yourself treatments unless you have a proper diagnosis. And without one, you might follow a treatment plan that isn't good for you. For instance, increasing fiber is often a great thing to do but there are some conditions in which it will make your bloating worse.

Even so, I prefer this sparse style to the popular self-help book formula of basic information followed by page after page of anecdotes that are just there to fill out the book. This is solid information, although some of it is still not scientifically proven. Dr. Chutkan is an experienced gastroenterologist and I respect the way she thinks. I have read one of her earlier books, which I also liked, although it is put together differently and has more detail.
2940055
As an engineer, I was looking forward to reading this book. Unfortunately, the writing tends to be a little dry.
This book is basically a number of short articles, one to two pages in length, on a large number of  inventions. It covers agricultural, mechanical, chemical, and a number of  other inventions or discoveries. It gives a brief history of each  invention, and then describes the invention.
Often, however, the  descriptions are crying for a good illustration. And while there are  illustrations scattered throughout the book, there just aren't enough.
3077604
John V. Karavitis  I caught sight of this book recently and made it a point to get a copy of it ASAP.  The author, Mike Brown, is a planetary scientist at CalTech whose research efforts in astronomy led to the demise of Pluto as a planet.  Although the book is a good read, and recommended for its descriptions of how astronomers work, the insider's look at the politics behind astronomy in general, and the details leading up to the demotion of Pluto as a planet in particular, nevertheless, it is weak in its overall narration, presentation and editing.  The book clocks in at 255 pages, and at times I didn't know whether I was reading a book about the subject matter or rather a biography of Dr. Brown's family's history, specifically related to the birth of his daughter Lilah.  These should have been deleted for better narrative flow.  There were also parts of the text where Dr. Brown claimed not to have details about conversations and events, yet for most of the book he appears to remember conversations exactly.  I also gather from the author's own words that he likes repetition (e.g., eating the same thing for lunch every day, at the same place; taking measurements of everything that catches his interest; being annoyingly nerdy at parties, etc.) and that he believes in fate.  Also detracting from the narration were the constant segues into his thoughts about how wondrous the universe is, e.g. when he was on vacation.  Were these glimpses into Dr. Brown's psychological inner world necessary for the story?  I think not.

This book could have been shorter, 200 pages perhaps, more focused, more robust, with better flow.  I don't fault Dr. Brown for what I perceive to be the weaknesses of this work, rather, I believe that a better job should have been done in editing the work.  My opinion is that any perceived weaknesses in the work lie with the editors.  Overall, though, I am glad I got a hold of this book, and I recommend it to anyone thinking about a career in science, especially in astronomy.  Look before you leap, there be dragons there!  Four stars.  John V. Karavitis, John Karavitis, Karavitis.
3514641
Dr. Gottfried identified numerous symptoms that the typical female experiences especially in her late forties and fifties.  I was thrilled to have someone finally recognize the symptoms I have had to live with for about 7 years now.  I thought I might have something to work with as she has you answer the questionnaires.  She advises on how to be firm with your physician in asking for certain tests and to discuss your findings from the questionnaire.  Unfortunately, the physicians I have accessed are not receptive.  They say the symptoms are normal for menopausal women.  They say the tests I've had in the past are normal.  I think one has to be wealthy to access progressive physicians such as Dr. Gottfried and the type of medicine practiced.  I only wish there were answers for the average woman that would be informative, healthy, and affordable.  This book falls short of helping the average woman.
2479672
This is a fascinating book, full of interesting stories about how various people have been able to live better lives by changing their brains--even cases that were once considered hopeless, like stroke victims.  The focus is "plasticity," the idea that the brain is constantly growing and changing, and that various techniques can make it change and grow in desired ways.

Doidge knows that the brain is not infinitely changeable.  Alas, he leaves the reader with little idea when it is and when it isn't.  There's a lot of good science here but I felt that the focus was too much on inspirational stories, stories that are not always representative.  Too much of it read like a press release for the various techniques and therapies.

The book is also an attempt to revivify psychoanalysis, which is, after all, about brain plasticity.  "Analysis" promised to change how one's brain worked, converting unhealthy ways to healthy ones.  Wildly popular in the middle of the last century, few psychologists take it very seriously today.

Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis, was brilliant, creative, learned, and hard-working.  He was also full of himself--and by the time of his death, psychoanalysis had become a self-contained cult, cut off from the mainstream of science.  It was also rather unsuccessful in curing mental problems.  In his later years, the Master himself touted it less as a cure and more as a fascinating journey into self-understanding.  Thus the never-ending analysis that Woody Allen lovingly satirizes.

In two chapters, Doidge points out ways in which psychoanalytic principles are compatible with modern plasticity research.  He is himself a psychoanalytic therapist and in chapter 9 presents a long case history of a man who was cured by his brand of analysis.  I was impressed.

Recommended, with caveats, to just about anyone interested in how the brain works.
4969809
This book gives a description of new electronic devices that heals a lot of illnesses, but we the readers are not sure about the testimonials the author describes. Testimonials should include addresses and phone numbers of the cured patients. Otherwise, we would think that it is only quackery. The book is not very clear about the concepts written in the book, maybe because we lack of medical knowledge. The book is interesting for the new medical concepts. I bought one of the electronic devices the Cardio DiaDens, a device that decreases the blood presure in 6 minutes. Yes, it decreased my blood pressure twice, but after that it increased my blood pressure several times, so I do not use it anymore. Maybe it lacks information about its use. This devices were designed for the russian astronauts and then made by several western companies, so there are several brands. If you like to know new approches to modern medicine. buy this book. There are few books about this theme.
4025083
I really enjoyed the beginning of the book dealing with Dr. Strassman's attempts to get his research underway - A good glimpse of the stress and strains dealing with government reasearch grants (a feeling I know all to well from my days of doing research).  When the research begins on human subjects - a neccessity in doing any research with psychedelics (since non-human primates though similar to us, cannot speak and convey experiences)- the nature of consciousness begins to be gleaned.  Some of the experiences conveyed by Dr. Strassman are lacking in descriptive detail and the truly "bad" trips are barely covered in his analysis - esp. the reptile rape.

I also had some reservations with Dr. Strassman's regressive psychotherapy with Psilocybin ( he mentions a woman remembering childhood abuse in one of these sessions) - I thought that this was truly irresponsible - and never mentions any of the numerous problems with psychotherapy without and especially with mind manifesting drugs.  Don't get me wrong, I think some of the research with Psychedelics can be usefull - case in point is the work with Ibogaine.  But, any altering of the consciousness comes with a price and by the end of the book Dr. Strassman seems to acknowledge this but doesn't fully accept the responsiblity (like the problems with his temple, school, marriage, and patients).

There is a reason for humans having DMT present in our system and there is a reason it is inhibited during our lives - we are spiritual and material beings and the material is not to exist in full awareness of the spiritual in daily life - we would go mad or be unable to cope with society.  That is why yogi's, shaman, and monks, are usually separate from the mainstream and only reach their spiritual states after initiation, long periods of time, reflection, and prayer - not through a quick shot of a chemical into the bloodstream. DMT can be a dangerous chemical and even Strassman admits this - and its long term benefits seem to be lacking - as Strassman also points out - short-term, many of the patients felt changed but this appeared to fade with time.  Orally active DMT in the form of ayahuasca under the guidance of a shaman seems to be more beneficial.  By the title of the book I would have thought that Dr. Strassman would have weighed in more on the spiritual responsibilities that he should have been exhibiting in his research instead of waiting until his temple gave him the boot to think about the possible danger he was putting himself and others in.  The Dr. was playing with realms and dimensions beyond the physical plane we are not accustomed to with very little regard. I feel that the work of Terrence McKenna covers many of these aspects in greater detail and with more tantalizing results.  The brothers McKenna have set the standards and often stress that you are to have a "relationship" with whatever you are using, and only a few of the subjects in Strassman's book seem to acknowledge this.
4721192
There are some interesting descriptions, and there are a number of very well-described individual episodes, as well as a consistent view of the world as being absurd.  But there are long passages consisting of lists (e.g., of streets walked) and of completely arbitrary turns in the events (they lack enough consistency to speak of a "plot").
1763476
Good basic plot. Too much repetitive descriptions
558896
I couldn't wait to read this book after I heard of it, so perhaps my expectations were too high.  It has some great qualities - great description, through research, and many exciting moments, especially the ending. But I want well developed characters and a plot that moves along, and description and facts that complement the action and characterization, not take over the book.  Also, there were aspects that just weren't logical.  SPOILER ALERT! I don't buy why Helen leaves her family and why it takes her husband so long to search for her, although perhaps because it was before the days of computers.  The daughter is an interesting and important part of the first part of the book, and then becomes very secondary.

Perhaps a good editor would give this excellent author some balance and perspective.
4211255
I read this book because I have been going through some difficult times and I was looking for some wisdom.  This book started out great by looking at and listing internal factors that help people deal with hard times.  It ended great by reviewing and summing up the factors.  In between it had some great stories of people who overcame adversity but I wish there was more analysis of how the factors played a part in the individuals ability to rebound.  That lack of analysis turned what could have been a great book to me into a good book.

The book starts off in the introduction and first chapter by looking at failure, including that experienced by the author, and looking at four "surprises" of  failure.  For instance one surprise is that optimism is overrated and people who overcome hard times are neither overly optimistic or pessimistic but are able to acknowledge negative outcomes with the confidence that they can deal with them as they arise.

The first chapter then examines a famous quote that has annoyed me  for most of my adult life.  The quote "what does not kill me makes me stronger" by Friedrich Nietzsche has always bothered me.

 My experience has been that for some, and for me at times, what does not kill me can wear me down and make me feel weaker. I have had a number of surgeries that have been really difficult and while I have recovered from the surgeries my body has never been as good as it was before the surgeries. Just because I have had all the surgeries does not mean each one is easier. If anything I am aware of the difficulties faced during the surgeries and while I can better prepare for the difficulties I  am also acutely aware of all the unpleasantness involved.

The author explains that Nietzsche is often misunderstood. He felt his ability to overcome severe health problems was a "kind of exceptional strength, available only to a few."  The author then looks to define this "exceptional strength." He wants to see what makes some people overcome adversity and others fail.

To do this the author looks at a study done in 2010 on people facing hard times as well as other sources. He then lists factors  that help people overcome hard times and become resilient.  I found this chapter fascinating and helpful.

The next 12 chapters look at one person who has overcome hard times. Each chapter looks at a factor critical to rebounding from hard times such as "The Danger of Optimism" or  "How to Improvise" and looks at a person who represents  that critical factor.  People range from Thomas Edison to baseball player/manager Joe Torre.

It is here where I feel the book could have been better. Rather than using each person as an example of a single factor key to rebounding from hard times I wish the author did more of an analysis of the many factors used by each individual.  Granted this may have run the risk of becoming repetitive but it would have given me a fuller understanding of how the person succeeded because one single factor is not enough. Instead I read great stories about people overcome hard times with each representing a factor necessary to do so without fully understanding the whole person.

The book concludes with a summary of what it takes to rebound and reviews eight factors key to doing so. It is a great way to end the book. I just wish the middle of the book had been as good as the first and last parts.

This book has helped me. Yet, a better analysis of the people examined in this book would have helped me much more.
4877351
This book is written by the wife of Dr. James R. Berenson who is a multiple myeloma specialist and researcher in West Hollywood, California. Proceeds from the sale of this book go to the Institute for Myeloma & Bone Cancer Research, which to me benefits both the doctor himself and his patients.

After reading this book, I believe the title is somewhat misleading. The first section consists of 25 chapters on multiple myeloma written from each patient's (or their caretaker's) point of view. There's only one chapter from a patient that has Waldenstrom's and Amyloidosis combined and two patient chapters on MGUS. One of those MGUS chapters is useless as it consists of one paragraph saying the patient has MGUS and how great Dr. Berenson is. In fact, all the case studies written by the patients read partially like an advertisement for the doctor and how great he and his staff are. It was a bit over the top in this regard.

Nevertheless, most of the chapters will provide hope to those suffering from and successfully living with multiple myeloma. From the standpoint of Waldenstrom's Macroglobulinema, Amyloidsis, and MGUS, I felt the case studies were practically useless but the write-up by Dr. Berenson in part two of the book was educational.

The second part of the book is the best because it's is where Dr. Berenson describes the diseases and their treatments (if any) as of 2008. There are also additional chapters from a physical therapist, pharmacy technician, pain specialist, nephrologist (kidney doctor), and other "doctor/technician" viewpoints at the cancer center which I feel are valuable and supportive.

In summary, this book is most useful for those suffering from multiple myeloma and not as useful for those suffering from Waldenstrom's Macroglobulinema, Amyloidsis, and MGUS. Here's my assessment:

5 stars - Hope for those suffering from multiple myeloma from a patient's (or their caretaker's) point of view.
1 star - Usefulness from the patient perspective for those with Waldenstrom's Macroglobulinema, Amyloidsis, and MGUS.
5 stars - Education and treatments on multiple myeloma.
3.5 stars - Education on Waldenstrom's Macroglobulinema, Amyloidsis, and MGUS. Not much on treatment, if any, for these variations however.
4222214
As a history buff and aspiring novelist of the California Gold Rush period, I found this volume fascinating.  I learned a great deal about slang, clothing, courtship, and how people entertained themselves.  Unfortunately, a text-only book is insufficient to properly describe clothing and hairstyles -- or convey exactly what their houses looked like.  The book desperately needs drawings or pictures!!  The dictionary-style organization is useful, but I would have preferred more narrative text describing each subject before McCutcheon launches into definitions.  This volume is definitely worth a spot on my bookshelf, but I'll keep hunting for something that provides the visuals.
2603064
I like this book, inspite of a number of shortcomings.  It's a nicely presented edition from Beyond Words Publishing. The idea of creating a dream database for correlating lunar transits and days of the month with dreams is helpful, and the suggestion that we should recapitulate the events of the day before going to sleep each night is also very useful. I liked the idea of mapping the dream phases and establishing a dream circle of friends in which to share dreams. (The dream chart is the same idea as the menstrual mandala in "Alchemy for Women: Personal Transformation through dreams and the female cycle" by Shuttle and Redgrove, 1995, with the addition of lunar transits.) As an interesting aside, this author leads dreaming circles through lindagoodman.net's academy, with the most recent on being entitled "dreaming on the vernal equinox 2001."
Overall, though, I found that there was too much emphasis on simply recounting people's dreams and without much guidance for the reader on how to work with their own.
Kaplan refers a lot to astrology, but she should have paid more attention to its technical aspects.  For example, void-of-course Moon is defined as follows: "As the moon moves from sign to sign during a month, she may, for a few hours, be outside the direct influence of any sign. (Those constellations are far apart!) When the moon is between signs, she is said to be void of course." In fact, a void of course Moon is one that does not make any complete aspect to any planet or the Sun before leaving the zodiacal sign that it is in. It is not somehow outside the influence of a sign.  Elsewhere, as another exmaple, she makes an odd statement: "Sagittarius governs the blood.  Dreams may refer to the sense of inner peace invoked by proper blood flow." For a fuller and more accurate treatment of this subject, see "Crossing the Threshold: The astrology of dreaming" by Linda Reid.  For a more complete exposition on dreaming and shamanism/consciousness work, see Robert Moss's books, such as "Conscious Dreaming: A spiritual path of everyday life."
3500478
This book does a good job telling ten anecdotes of people who were stricken with heart failure.  Then it explains, in a way very light on details, what was going on.  This is probably good for people who like stories.  If you're a techie, the personal anecdotes are tiresome.

For this book to be useful, it should go over how normal heart function works, electrically and mechanically.  It should explain how a decrease in heart function can affect the rest of the body and why.  Then it should discuss the failure modes that cause a decrease.  With each failure mode, it should discuss possible interventions.

Armed with this info, a patient and family could made sense out of test results and proposed interventions.  The patient could judge how he's feeling against what the interventions are supposed to be doing.

Instead it's a lot of anecdotes.  One of the cases involved someone with severe heart failure that looked hopeless.  They flew him from a city hospital to the *Cleveland Clinic*, where the author is a Medical Director, and they performed advanced interventions that saved his life.  A year later, his heart failure was in remission and he was doing great.  They didn't go into details about the interventions, but clearly the author is promoting his own hospital.  I don't mind their self-promotion, but it needs to be backed up with hard science.

The stories really are surprising.  People with no history of health problems in their 40s or younger sometimes suddenly get heart problems.  There are medical interventions, some developed in the past 15 years, to help them.  They never expected this to happen to them.  It makes you think how this could happen to anyone.

If you want the science and nuts-and-bolts, though, you need to look elsewhere.  Historians say the mechanistic view of biology took hold after William Harvey described the circulation of the blood.  The heart is so much like a simple human-made machine, that this organ ushered in a mechanistic view of life.  The topic cries out for an engineering approach.  The book doesn't deliver.
1384000
For the most part, this little book was helpful. The vocabulary and presentation need a bit more spiffing up. It's as if the writer is speaking the information to her best friend instead of divulging it in written format to inquistive readers. It needs an editor who has medical experience to confirm the facts. The titling of diabetes reads gasterointestinal when it should read gestational. This oversight had me second guessing the rest of the information provided. If you decide to read this book, stick to the tips more than the basis of medical information. If you want to believe a medical fact provided, find a second, more credible source. The cover is more appealing than the book itself.