Monday, July 5, 2010

Four Very Good Summer Reads

Looking for some very good reading material for vacation or sitting by the beach? I offer four books of diverse topics and tastes for your reading palate...

The Devil's Casino: Friendship, Betrayal and High Stake Games Played Inside Lehman Brothers by Vicky Ward. If you like to read about internal corporate politics, treachery, ambition and greed, you'll enjoy this book. I read this book on the beach. This book is a corporate version of the Housewives of New Jersey except most of the characters are men.

War by Sebastian Junger. Junger was embedded with American forces in Afghanistan. After reading this very gritty and graphic book, I was struck by two thoughts: First, how brave are our young men fighting in the hell holes of Afghanistan. And second, is all their sacrifice and all the money poured into the fight against the Taliban worth it? I encourage all armed chair generals to read this book and see what they think.

Hardcourt Confidential by Patrick McEnroe. McEnroe shares stories from his time as a player and commentator on the pro tennis tour and as coach of the U.S. Davis Cup team. Patrick is the younger and calmer brother of tennis great John McEnroe. Patrick is very candid about his experiences and offers some revealing insights into many of the top tennis players today including Federer, Nadal, the Williams sisters etc. If you are a tennis fan, you will enjoy reading this book.

Reckless by Andrew Gross. Excellent page turner that had my attention from the first page to the exciting conclusion. Gross cleverly incorporates the background of the recent financial meltdown in banking and financial services in this thriller. His two main characters, Ty Hauck and Naomi Blum team up to save the world from financial disaster. Lots of action, violence and gun play...It quenched my thirst for a James Bond like adventure and story.

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