Book Review - Thank You For My Service by Mat Best

I'm a big fan of entrepreneurs and hearing how they stumbled into their businesses.

Thank You For My Service by Mat Best is a nonfiction book telling the story of a teenage boy who joined the military, his experiences in the Middle East, and finding a purpose and direction after coming back to civilian life. It is available as an eBook, Audiobook, and those paper things your grandparents used to read.

The Good

Stories. Mat is a great storyteller. He makes even the most mundane events sound exciting. He injects so much personality into his tales and has a great way to insert his wild opinions and commentaries into stories without interrupting the flow.

Lessons. Mat made a lot of mistakes and learned from most of them. He isn't afraid to share his mistakes or successes with others. He's very honest and doesn't fake humility or pride.

The Bad

Language. The language is definitely adult. It adds a certain humor and personality to the book, but some people may not be able to get past it.

What I Would Like to Have Seen

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Overall

Thank You For My Service by Mat Best is a nonfiction book telling the story of a teenage boy who joined the military, his experiences in the Middle East, and finding a purpose and direction after coming back to civilian life. Mat is a great storyteller. He makes even the most mundane events sound exciting. He injects so much personality into his tales and has a great way to insert his wild opinions and commentaries into stories without interrupting the flow. Mat made a lot of mistakes and learned from most of them. He isn't afraid to share his mistakes or successes with others. He's very honest and doesn't fake humility or pride.  The language is definitely adult. It adds a certain humor and personality to the book, but some people may not be able to get past it. I highly recommend this book and give it 5 out of 5 eReaders.

    

Movie Review - Top Secret Affair

I like black & white classic films, and it's always fun to discover a new one I'd never even heard of.

Top Secret Affair is a 1957 romantic comedy film. It is unrated and is appropriate for most ages.

The Good

Story. The story was great. A magazine owner is upset when her candidate doesn't receive a post and sets out to destroy the military man who did only to fall in love with him.

Humor. The movie is funny with a lot of jokes I hadn't heard before and a lot of humor I typically don't see in films.

The Bad

. . .

What I Would Like to Have Seen

...

Overall

Top Secret Affair is a hilarious film about a magazine owner matching wits against a military man who foils her at almost every turn. The humor is great. The romance works. The film is well paced and entertains from start to finish. I give it 4 out of 5 Boxes of Popcorn.

   

 

Book Review - The Aviators: Eddie Rickenbacker, Jimmy Doolittle, Charles Lindbergh, and the Epic Age of Flight by Winston Groom

I'm a big fan of history, especially from the gay 90s thru the roaring 20s and into the 30s and early 40s. I also love early aviation. So how could I not pick up this book.

The Aviators: Eddie Rickenbacker, Jimmy Doolittle, Charles Lindbergh, and the Epic Age of Flight by Winston Groom is a satirical, comedic, science fiction legal thriller. It is available as an eBook, Audiobook, and those paper things your grandparents used to read.

The Good

Stories. The stories the author chose were incredible, and while the men mentioned didn't really work together or have the same background, their stories parallelled in interesting ways.

Writing. The stories were so well told. The writing didn't get in the way of the narrative. The author was very objective presenting the stories as history and not trying to push a particular view or political position.

The Bad

Narration. The narration was good, but it wasn't great. It didn't take away from the story, but it certainly didn't add anything to it.

What I Would Like to Have Seen

I'd love for this to be adapted to film.

Overall

The Aviators: Eddie Rickenbacker, Jimmy Doolittle, Charles Lindbergh, and the Epic Age of Flight by Winston Groom tells the story of three incredible pioneers of early aviation and their lifetimes of contributions even after their initial fame and history-making exploits. The three men didn't work together or even follow the same path, yet their stories have several parallels that I wasn't aware of. The writing was strong, the storytelling masterful. I couldn't put this down. I give this book 5 out of 5 eReaders.

    

Book Review - Make Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change Your Life...And Maybe the World by Admiral William H. McRaven

I've heard you should never judge a book by its cover, but I've made many reading and purchasing choices based solely on the cover, and I rarely regret it. I wonder if a corollary would be: you shouldn't judge a book by its title. I also have based many a reading and purchasing decision on the titles. Make your bed and change the world. Who wouldn't have their curiosity piqued?

Make Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change Your Life...And Maybe the World by Admiral William H. McRaven is an expanded version of a motivational speech given at a university commencement and is appropriate for all ages and all audiences.

The Good

Advice. This book was written by a retired Admiral about his experiences in SEAL training and 10 things he learned that can be applied to any life. All 10 things have a lot of merit and application.

Experiences. I really enjoyed hearing about the specifics of SEAL training. The author did such a good job describing the trials that, at times, I felt like I was in the mud with him.

The Bad

Narration. I'm glad the author chose to narrate the book himself, and he has a decent voice, but his delivery is very flat and even and monotoned.

What I Would Like to Have Seen

This book is an elaboration on a speech the admiral delivered at a commencement. He gives the elaboration first--which is fascinating--and then he gives the speech with is very repetitive and unnecessary.

Overall

Make Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change Your Life...And Maybe the World by Admiral William H. McRaven is a retelling of his experience in Navy SEAL training and 10 things he learned that can be applied to every life. The experiences are fascinating; the advice sagacious. I give this book a solid 4.5 out of 5 eReaders.