I know very, very, VERY little about economics, and I pretty much hated every math or numbers based class I ever had. My wife does all of our banking (thanks, honey!), I never, ever, have cash on me, and I basically hate spending money on anything other than protein bars, toothpaste, Gin, and yes, books. That said, I’ve always wondered how the federal government actually paid for stuff, you know? Like, we just ended a 20-year war in Afghanistan, and magically there was 3 TRILLION dollars just readily available and at our disposal to use as we saw fit. We…

OK, so, I went through all of my book shelves and wracked my brain to make a list of all of the books I have read over the past handful of years that I DIDN’T have notes on, but I wanted to get them down in one list and keep them in one place. A quick sentence or two on each book should suffice, and then I can start fresh with a new batch. Here we go:

These Truths by Jill Lepore — A sweeping history of the U.S., full of her own twists and interpretations on what actually went…

This book is incredible — and brutal. Kendi has proven to be somewhat of a minor celebrity this past year and has just taken the helm of the new racial justice program at Boston University (my alma mater), but he is a deft and compelling writer, and he weaves his way through the history of race in America by forcing us to acknowledge the awful facts of our past. It’s simply unimaginable and undeniable what we (read: white people) have done to “other” races in the America’s for hundreds of years, and some of the stories are so shocking and…

I needed the positive tone of this book when I read it last summer. So much of the spring, summer, and fall of 2020 was mired in the depression of the pandemic, racial strife, unemployment, and other real life calamities, I really needed to read something with a hopeful, inspirational message, and Meacham delievered. He is an excellent writer and he blends American history with the context and nuance needed to understand certain time periods from our past without making excuses for the behavior or conduct on the part of certain individuals or groups. His argument is that although America…

This book is INTENSE. It’s long, it’s dense, it’s full of crazy, weird, awesome, amazing, random, ridiculous, stupefying facts about how our body works, and why, and how, and when, and … yeah, intense. But very, very well written and very interesting — at least, if you are a health and wellness guy like me and someone who is geniunely curious as to how the body functions and why it does what it does. I think this one takes the prize for most notes I have ever written because there were just so many interesting facts I couldn’t put my…

Don’t quite recall if I read this one before or after she died, but it’s really just essential reading for anyone who has any interest whatsoever in the Supreme Court, law, and women’s rights. Her story is just so remarkable it’s almost hard to fathom, how this tiny little powerhouse muscled her way into the inner sanctum of the profession, and she never compromised herself or her beliefs along the way. She was just simply herself — brilliant, kind, funny, even-keeled and dedicated to making sure that women would never be left behind. This book isn’t so much an autobiography…

We were so close after the Civil War. So very, very, very close to getting rid of racial strife once and for all — or, at the very least, nipping it in the bud with prudent, focused, and specific laws and amendments to make sure that slavery, or the like, never ever happens again. Foner points out, however, that even though post-Civil War reconstruction and the amendments that followed did, in fact, remake the constitution, we simply did not have the political will and forceful leadership necessary to ensure that Black Americans could live the lives that they needed and…

Ok, full disclosure here: I am an unabashed, unashamed, die-hard, loyal, ride-or-die Lebron fan. I am from Cleveland, and proud of it. Lebron delivered for us, time and time and time again, and I simply just can’t get enough of watching him play. But even more than his basketball skills — G.O.A.T, for those counting at home — I have always been fascinated by his life off the court, and his quest to become the first billionaire athlete has been enthralling to witness over the years. Windhorst has been covering Lebron since he was in high school, so not only…