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Great by Choice
By: Jim Collins
Jim Collins’s book, Good to Great, is one of the most interesting and helpful books I have ever read. It is not just about business; it is about leadership and effectiveness in any group in any endeavor. This follow-up study looks at why some companies make it through difficult, turbulent times and others do not. One key theme: “[I]f there’s one overarching message arising from more than six thousand years of corporate history across all our research...it would be this: greatness is not primarily a matter of circumstance; greatness is first and foremost a matter of conscious choice and discipline.” (p. 182)
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Civilization: The West and the Rest
By: Niall Ferguson
These days there is a lot being written about the decline of America. I don’t believe it, but I do think it is helpful to study and understand the broad course of history and what factors led to the rise and fall of great nations. Here, one of today’s most prolific historians analyzes why Western Civilization rose ahead of others. A key insight he offers about our “decline”: “Maybe the real threat is posed not by the rise of China, Islam or CO2 emissions, but by our own loss of faith in the civilization we inherited from our ancestors.” (p. 325)
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The Collapse of Complex Societies
By: Joseph A. Tainter
There are a lot of disturbing insights here. One is that during the early part of the Roman Empire, they paid for their current standards of living by taxing the future. As that became insufficient during the later stages of the Empire, they paid for their standards of living by undermining the ability to be able to pay taxes in the future. A downward spiral ensued.
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Hunting in the Shadows: The Pursuit of Al Qa'ida since 9/11
By: Seth G. Jones
Dr. Seth Jones has testified before the House Armed Services Committee and is a well-respected expert on Al Qaeda and terrorism. His new book is one of the best surveys of our battle with terrorists since 9/11, including the near misses. He also offers his perspective on how we can best prevent another wave of attacks.
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Steve Jobs
By: Walter Isaacson
There is much to learn from a well-written biography, and Isaacson captures the admirable and less-than-admirable qualities of Steve Jobs. At the end, you may not like Jobs, but one has to admire his products and all that he accomplished.
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Beautiful Outlaw: Experiencing the playful, disruptive, extravagant personality of Jesus
By: John Eldredge
I have read – and often reread -- all of John Eldredge’s books. His newest is about Jesus and contains much insight and wisdom. At one point he writes, “The spirit of our day is a soft acceptance of everything – except deep conviction in anything.”(p. 79)
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Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption
By: Laura Hillenbrand
Unbroken is the true story of Louis Zaperini, an Olympic athlete who survived a plane crash and weeks adrift to become a prisoner of war in Japan during World War II. With all of the stories around us that highlight human faults, this example of courage and determination to persevere will inspire everyone who reads it. In addition, Pastor Craig Barnes makes the point that throughout his captivity Mr. Zaperini refused to become a victim. In some ways his biggest challenge came after the war when he floundered without a purpose until one day his wife dragged him to a Billy Graham event, where he found a new purpose that has focused his life ever since.
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Known and Unknown: A Memoir
By: Donald Rumsfeld
I often try to avoid books by those who were recently in office, but Secretary Rumsfeld has had an amazing career over several decades. His firsthand account of many important events and reflections on those with whom he has worked is well worth a read. I was most interested in his recollections of September 11, 2001, as I was one of those who had breakfast with him that morning and left the Pentagon a few minutes before it was struck by the plane. |
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Going Home to Glory: A Memoir of Life with Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1961 - 1969
By: David Eisenhower
David Eisenhower, for whom Camp David is named, has written an interesting book about President Eisenhower’s life after the White House. It includes the personal and the national issues of the tumultuous 1960’s. For several years, I have been a member of a commission charged with developing a memorial to Eisenhower in Washington, D.C. If all goes well, groundbreaking may take place next year to honor this historic figure, who was actually born in Texas. |
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Hero: The Life and Legend of Lawrence of Arabia
By: Michael Korda
T. E. Lawrence has received much more study in recent years because of the insurgent type warfare he led in the desert during World War I. Korda set out to write a definitive biography of Lawrence, and I think he succeeded. |
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The Longest War: The Enduring Conflict between America and Al-Qaeda
By: Peter Bergen
I do not agree with all of the conclusions Bergen has reached, but he has made a useful contribution to our understanding of this fight against Al Qaeda and its affiliates. |
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The Notes: Ronald Reagan's Private Collection of Stories and Wisdom
By: Ronald Reagan
On this 100th anniversary of Ronald Reagan’s birth, new revelations of his thinking, writing, and speaking only enhance his place in history. This volume of notes and stories that he collected reminds us of Reagan’s “shining city on a hill” and the difference he made in American and in world history. |
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Winston's War: Churchill, 1940-1945
By: Sir Max Hastings
The reason to read about Churchill is summarized on page 3 of this book, “Churchill was the greatest Englishman and one of the greatest human beings of the twentieth century, indeed of all time.” This work takes him through the war years, arguing that he made mistakes but that he was indispensible to victory. |
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WAR
By: Sebastian Junger
A raw, first-hand account of several trips to a forward base in Afghanistan. It helps paint the picture of what day-to-day life is like in one of the most hostile areas and how young men make life and death decisions in seconds.
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Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History
By: S. C. Gwynne
A terrific history of North Texas and the Panhandle, one of the last areas in the continental U.S. to be settled. The author does not romanticize the Indians or fail to point out where the government did not keep its word. Brutality was a fact of life on both sides. |
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The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine
By: Michael Lewis
This book has been cited by people all over the political map to justify their views of the financial crisis. But it is well worth reading to help understand the Wall Street portion of what happened. |
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Rendezvous with Destiny
By: Craig Shirley
A blow-by-blow account of Reagan’s 1980 campaign. We tend to think back and remember a landslide, but at several points it was a close run thing. I’m also struck by how much many of the issues Reagan talked about during that campaign and still relevant to today’s debates. |
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Churchill
By: Paul Johnson
“Of all the towering figures of the twentieth century, both good and evil, Winston Churchill was the most valuable to humanity, and also the most likable. . . . None holds more lessons, especially for youth.” (p.3)
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Actions Speak Louder
By: John C. Bridgman
John Bridgman has written a book full of good, common sense advice, but as a friend told me during my first campaign, “The thing about common sense is that it’s not all that common.” This book inspires with important reminders about what’s really important in life. In a time of intemperate and inflated rhetoric – particularly out of Washington – it reminds us that what we do speaks a lot louder than what we say, and it offers a number of ways to let our actions speak even louder in being a positive influence on others.
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"There Is No Alternative” – Why Margaret Thatcher Matters
By: Claire Berlinski
An interesting, rather informal look at Margaret Thatcher and the reasons she was important to Britain in the 1980’s, as well as the reasons she is still important to us today. Reading of what she faced then will remind you of what Americans are facing now. Studying her courage will inspire you.
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Churchill By Himself
Editor: Richard Langworth
There are so many quotations attributed to Sir Winston Churchill that the great authentic ones sometimes get lost, or at least confused. This book is the ultimate authority on what the great man really said and on some of the most frequent misquotes attributed to him.
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The Accidental Guerrilla: Fighting Small Wars in the Midst of a Big One
By: David Kilcullen
Interesting analysis of the threats we face. The author talks about the combination of globally oriented terrorists with regional allies and local guerrillas who get used by them. He sheds light on the situation in Afghanistan, Iraq, and elsewhere and has testified before Congress several times.
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Once An Eagle
By: Anton Myrer
An article noted that our commander in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, had read this book several times, so I decided to try it. It is a long novel that tells an incredible story of a military man who lives with truth and honor and with his eyes wide open. The lessons and the inspiration from this book apply not just to those in the military but to all of us.
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The World is Curved: Hidden Dangers to the Global Economy
By: David M. Smick
Very interesting look at today’s economy and the problems we face. Among other points, the author notes that the political and economic worlds increasingly do not understand each other, which produces devastating consequences for our country.
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Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief
By: James M. McPherson
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Lincoln: The Biography of a Writer
By: Fred Kaplan
With the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln’s birth, there is a flood of new books on our greatest President. These two are excellent. One surveys Lincoln’s role in directing the war. The other is an in-depth look at his influences and development as a writer.
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Redefining Health Care
By: Michael E. Porter and Elizabeth Olmsted Teisberg
Argues that our health care system should be reformed to have competition based on value for the patient. The book says that mandatory measurement and reporting of results is perhaps the single most important step in reforming the health care system.
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The Shack
By: William P. Young
An amazing work of Christian Fiction that is sweeping the country.
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Fixing Failed States
By: Ashraf Ghani and Claire Lockhart
Insightful look at what does and does not work in building nations.
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Future Jihad
By: Walid Phares
Terrorist Strategies against America by Walid Phares "The war on terror is winnable if the war of ideas is won." Lebanon-born Walid Phares helps provide the kind of deep understanding of our adversary needed to wage successfully that war of ideas in Future Jihad: Terrorist Strategies against America. Emphasizing that the jihadists are "on a mission to resume what their ancestors began," Phares describes movement's history, objectives and strategies, as well as the danger and the vulnerabilities posed by its ideological prison. He argues, correctly in my view, that the West has reacted to individual terrorist events rather than pursuing a long-term strategy that undermines the root cause of the movement - its ideas. Much has been written on terrorism and jihad in six years since 9/11, but only a few works provide the penetrating insight that will help equip us to wage effectively the broader ideological struggle. This book is one.
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Patriotic Grace
By: Peggy Noonan
Pg. 43 “What we need most right now, at this moment, is a kind of patriotic grace- a grace that takes the long view, apprehends the moment we’re in, comes up with ways of dealing with it, and eschews the politically cheap and manipulative.”
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The Forgotten Man, A New History of the Great Depression
By: Amity Shlaes
Insightful study of the Great Depression and government actions that made it longer and deeper.
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7 Deadly Scenarios: A Military Futurist Explores War in the 21st Century
By: Andrew Krepinevich
One of the top national security thinkers in the country spells out some nightmare scenarios to help focus our planning and better understanding the security challenges we face. Highly recommended.
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