Reviews




That young girl not only survived and grew up, she also broke free from her abusive environment. Her story makes for a compelling new book, Unveiled: How Western Liberals Empower Radical Islam.


Two recent books explore these topics. The first is The Art of Memoir by Mary Karr. The second is How to Have Impossible Conversations: A Very Practical Guide by Peter Boghossian and James Lindsay.

Despite Armstrong’s sharp passion, though, her remarks about Islam seem blunted by political correctness. I blame the bogus concept of “Islamophobia.”




Columnist Shares Top 10 Winter Reading List Brandon Sun, February 5, 2018: Five years ago, I shared a Top 10 list of recent books that had led me to a better understanding of the world. Time to do it again!

If so, there is a book for you by author Alan Gelb: Having the Last Say: Capturing Your Legacy in One Small Story.



Questions like those led author Alan Livingstone MacLeod to write the book, Remembered in Bronze and Stone: Canada’s Great War Memorial Statuary.

If that sounds ominous, it should. This is the start of a remarkable new book, On Tyranny: 20 Lessons from the 20th Century. Historian Timothy Snyder was so alarmed by the election of Donald Trump that he wrote this short volume warning his fellow citizens.

So Many Reasons to Appreciate Podcasts Brandon Sun, September 26, 2016: A review of the podcast genre, including a look at The Tim Ferriss Show and Malcolm Gladwell's Revisionist History.




“The contemporary obituary is emerging as a distinct literary genre,” the author says. “These short gems are written in a conversational voice with everyday language, wit, and insight.”


A
History of Struggling to Grasp Climate Change Reality
Brandon Sun, November 30, 2015: How we got to our
understanding of global warming today. A number of books over the
years have been very helpful, including the new Don’t
Even Think About It: Why Our Brains are Wired to Ignore Climate
Change.
Exploring
What's Lost in a Connected World Brandon Sun, October
19, 2015: Serendipity led me to The
End of Absence: Reclaiming What We’ve Lost in a World of Constant
Connection at the Brandon Public Library. And a good thing,
too. This enjoyable and thoughtful new book is a useful antidote to
the influence of the Internet and mobile devices.
Author Digs Deep into Lives of Archeologists
Brandon Sun, August 10, 2015: What do you think might be the
coolest job around? Does your list include “archeologist”? If so,
you share a fascination with American writer Marilyn Johnson. Her
new book is Lives
in Ruins: Archeologists and the Seductive Lure of Human Rubble.
“A New Ideal For How We Die”
Brandon
Sun, April 6, 2015: How would you like to live the last bit of
your life before you die? Not a question we usually think of. And
that is a problem, American doctor Atul Gawande says. Diagnosing
this problem, he prescribes solutions in his bestselling new book, Being Mortal:
Medicine and What Matters in the End.
War on Drugs: A Failed Experiment
Brandon Sun, December 8, 2014: Just as the marijuana debate is
heating up, Paula Mallea’s new book The
War on Drugs: A Failed Experiment should be the go-to
primer on the subject. And she deals with not just pot, but all
drugs.
This
Changes
Everything Brandon Sun, November 24, 2014: This Changes
Everything by Naomi Klein is a landmark book. Klein is a
leading Canadian social activist, bestselling author, and public
intellectual. Now, she takes on climate change: where we are at, and
what needs to be done.
Death and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom,
and Wonder Obituary Guide, August 5, 2014:
The book
Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life
of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder by Arianna Huffington
notes that a heightened awareness of death can be a stimulus to live
a better life.
Quality
of Life, Well-Being Research Something We Can Feel Good About
Brandon Sun, July 28, 2014: What determines our quality
of life? Our well-being? Our happiness? I had the good fortune
recently to ask an expert who has just produced a mammoth work,
the Encyclopedia
of Quality of Life and Well-Being Research.
Book
Provides Intriguing, Scientific Glimpse into State of Religious
Beliefs Brandon Sun, March 3, 2014: How does
religion affect us as individuals and as a society? A new book by an
American social scientist gives us some provocative answers. What You Don't Know
About Religion (But Should) is sure to . . .
Book
Blows Lid Off Food Industry Brandon Sun, December
16, 2013: You could easily ask: Why was the new book Salt Sugar Fat
even published? Don’t we already know that these three
ingredients contribute to overeating and poor health? Don’t we
already know that the goal of food companies is to make lots of
money?
The
End of Growth? Brandon Sun, August 19, 2013:
Canadian banker Jeff Rubin says that we are at peak oil and
the end of growth. He forecasts lots of cloudy days ahead. But there
may be some silver linings. Chief economist at CIBC World Markets
for 20 years. Rubin skewers conventional beliefs of the economics
profession. Central among them is the importance and benefit of
economic growth, which Rubin says is “stamped into an economist’s
DNA.”
Nestlé
Fitness 14 Day Weight Loss Program – What’s Wrong Here?
Live Well, Do Good, February 21, 2013: I did not make this up.
A major corporation says you can lose weight by eating more of its
sugar-sweetened cereal instead of real food. In a huge global
marketing effort, this campaign is designed to sell more
cereal. But it also promotes a powerful message about food, health,
and the way we see ourselves.
Living
Well While Doing Good Live Well, Do Good, February
20, 2013: It is with great enjoyment that I review a book on
the same subject as this website. Living
Well While Doing Good is a fine book by Donna Schaper.
Short and readable, it has lots of food for thought. Brimming with
stories, images, and metaphors, for me reading it was like listening
to a sermon in a church. And I mean that in a good way!
Is
"Portlandia" the new "Ecotopia"? Live Well, Do
Good, February 17, 2013: When my kids introduced me to the
delightful TV program Portlandia,
I had an immediate sense of déjà vu about my generation and the
dream of the 1970s. That earlier dream was also of an alternative
society where people were more in tune with each other and the
Earth. And that dream was eloquently depicted in 1975 by writer
Ernest Callenbach.
Books for Winter Reading
Brandon Sun, January 7, 2013: These books from the past
few years have led me to a better understanding of the world.
Perhaps some of these books – or these themes – will pique your
interest for some deep winter reading.
This Book
is Overdue! (A Review) Live Well, Do Good,
December 20, 2012: This book about librarians not only is much
more interesting than it sounds, but also has something to say to
all of us struggling with the weight of the information age. “Who
can we trust?” the author asks. “In a world where information itself
is a free-for-all, with traditional news sources going bankrupt and
publishers in trouble, we need librarians more than ever.”
Obituaries
in American Culture Obituary Guide, November 30, 2012:
How Americans understand their lives is revealed by how they
record their deaths.
Giving: How Each of Us Can Change the
World Live Well, Do Good, November 28, 2012: A
review of this fine comprehensive book by former president Bill
Clinton.
Serious
Summer Reading Looks Good to Those Around You!
Brandon Sun, August 7, 2012: Zack Gross shares his
book suggestions.
Surfing
World Wide Web Breeds Shallow Thinking Brandon Sun,
April 2, 2012: A review of the book by Nicholas Carr, The
Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains. See
also: Deepening
Our Thinking in the Internet Age: Ten Tips.
U.S.
Will Collapse Like Greece, Bestselling Author Predicts
Brandon Sun, March 5, 2012: A review of Mark Steyn’s
book After
America: Get Ready for Armageddon.
Book
Brings Captain Palliser’s Expedition to Life Brandon
Sun, January 30, 2012: A review of the new book about the
Palliser Expedition that explored the Prairies a century and a half
ago: On the
Road with Captain Palliser by Joyce McCart.
The
Medium is the Message? Brandon Sun, December 5,
2011: A review of the biography Marshall
McLuhan by Douglas Coupland.
Famous
Detectives How to Become a Detective, December 5, 2011:
A look at the detective fiction genre, which brings to
our lives a bit of wit, wisdom, and wonder.
The Bathrobe
Millionaire Live Well, Do Good, October 7, 2011:
A review of the book The
Bathrobe Millionaire: Confessions of an Unemployable Job-Hopper
Who Made a Fortune Without Work, Risk, or Khakis by
Jason Yelowitz.
The 4-Hour Workweek
September 5, 2011: Live Well, Do Good, A review of the book by
Timothy Ferriss, The
4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich.
Canadian
History Boring? Not if You Know a Little
Brandon Sun, July 18, 2011: Is Canadian history really that
boring? A review of the book by John Ralston Saul titled Louis-Hippolyte
LaFontaine and Robert Baldwin.
Youth May Soon Lead Change
Brandon Sun, February 27, 2011: Reflections on the
revolutions in North Africa; a talk and book about Climate
Wars by Gwynne Dyer; and the book by Michael Adams, Stayin’ Alive: How
Canadian Baby Boomers Will Work, Play, and Find Meaning in the
Second Half of Their Adult Lives.
New
Book on Louis Riel Leaves Much to Ponder Brandon
Sun, February 13, 2011: The story begins in 1844. Louis Riel
is born in the settlement at Red River (now Winnipeg). He is Métis .
. . A review of a new book by Joseph Boyden, Louis
Riel and Gabriel Dumont.
New Book
Inspires Readers to Compassion, Social Justice
Brandon Sun, February 6, 2011 (Zack Gross): The Charter for
Compassion and a review of the book Twelve
Steps to a Compassionate Life by Karen Armstrong.
The
Greatest Show On Earth Brandon Sun, January 30,
2011: Evolution or creation? Science or religion? A review of
the recent bestselling book by British biologist Richard
Dawkins, The
Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution.
A Year of Living Generously
Brandon Sun, January 2, 2011: Kingston, Ontario
journalist Lawrence Scanlan reports on his volunteering for a
different charity each month for a year. The review of
A Year of Living Generously: Dispatches From the Front Lines of
Philanthropy.
Book
Helps Put Seton’s Westman Roots on Display Brandon
Sun, December 5, 2010: A world renowned naturalist, wildlife
illustrator, and co-founder of the Boy Scouts once lived in Western
Manitoba. Review of the book by David L. Witt, Ernest Thompson Seton: The Life and
Legacy of an Artist and Conservationist.
Book
Looks at Islamic World Brandon Sun, November 7,
2010: Are Islam and the West engaged in a “clash of
civilizations”? Can Islam change to incorporate the equality of
women? Review of the book by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Nomad: From Islam to America: A
Personal Journey Through the Clash of Civilizations.
More Thoughtful Approach to Racial Issues is Required Brandon Sun, September 13, 2010: Review of the book by American professor Thomas Sugrue, Not Even Past: Barack Obama and the Burden of Race.
Canadian Author Wonders What Harper is Reading Brandon Sun, July 3, 2010: Review of the book What Is Stephen Harper Reading? by Yann Martel.
Authors Offer Food for Thought Brandon Sun, April 24, 2010: Review of the books An Edible History of Humanity by Tom Standage and In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto by Michael Pollan.
Prime
Minister Barack Obama? Brandon Sun, August 22,
2009: Reflections on the book Open
And Shut: Why America has Barack Obama and Canada has Stephen
Harper.
Six
Words To Describe A Life? Brandon Sun, July 25,
2009: Can just six words sum up a life? The book Not
Quite What I Was Planning.
Role
of Religion in War and Peace Brandon Sun, May 30,
2009: Reflections on religion, war, Brandon's Labyrinth of
Peace, and Madeleine Albright's book The
Mighty and the Almighty: Reflections on America, God, and World
Affairs.
Lessons in Success
Brandon Sun, May 2, 2009: Why are some people much more
successful than others? Malcolm Gladwell's book Outliers:
The Story of Success.
We
Can Forge a New Drug Policy Brandon Sun, April 4,
2009: Reflections on the war in Afghanistan, the War on Drugs,
and A Fair
Country: Telling Truths About Canada by John Ralston Saul.
Remembering
Nellie McClung Brandon Sun, March 7, 2009:
The legendary Canadian feminist leader is the subject of the
new biography Nellie
McClung.
Drug,
Alcohol Policies Reveal Our Hypocrisy Brandon Sun,
January 10, 2009:
Reflections on the futility of the "War on Drugs"
and the book A
History of the World in Six Glasses.
Be
Prepared: Will, Health Care Directive (Living Will), Obituary, and
More Brandon Sun, December 13, 2008: Among
the resources, a new book about health care directives, Living Will, Living Well.
Learning
to Step Lightly Brandon Sun, November 15, 2008:
A new book by Manitoba author Mark Burch invites us to
consider living more simply. Stepping Lightly:
Simplicity for People and the Planet.
Tours,
Book Bring Cemetery to Life Brandon Sun, June 14,
2008: Three great resources bring to life the stories buried
in our local cemeteries. The theatre presentation
Gossip in the Graveyard, the walking tour What
Lies Beneath, and the book Every
Stone a Story: Manitoba's Buried History.
Wiki
Is The Way Of The Future Brandon Sun, May 3, 2008:
Wikinomics:
How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything.
Ordinary
Lives, Extraordinary Stories Brandon Sun, September 29,
2007: The book Obit: Inspiring
Stories of Ordinary People Who Led Extraordinary Lives.
All
Those Little Things Can Really Add Up These Days – To Cash
Brandon Sun, March 15, 2007: The
Long Tail: Why the Future of Business is Selling Less of More.
What’s
Up With Grand Theft Auto? Brandon Sun, August 18, 2005:
A controversy about the rating of one of the Grand
Theft Auto video games.
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