Let's Talk Books...

Winter is a good time to read books. Well, actually, there is no BAD time to read books...for me, books are a lot like my television viewing.  It's all over the board...it happens every day....I love it...some are inspirational and life changing.  And -- every now and then -- I go to the end, only to realize I completely wasted my time...

This is what I've been reading lately...

If I haven't mentioned John Sanford -- let me say it now -- HE IS TERRIFIC.  His stories take place in the midwest...which I love!  And his books are roller coaster rides.  If you like Lee Child, Clive Cussler, Ken Follett or David Balducci -- you will love John Sanford.  And his competent, funny, kind-hearted hero, Lucas Davenport.

In this book, his step daughter, Lettie, plays a major role -- and I was ready for that to happen.  But this book had a little too much creepy violence, and I didn't think it was his best...

This is a CD book I'm listening to in my car. I have long been a fan of George Carlin...but that guy made some really bad choices. And, at the end of the day, I thought he got very full of himself. And maybe that's the price people pay for success. It made me think...and that was always his real talent.

Which brings me to this -- Personal History, the autobiography of Katharine Graham, the long time publisher of the Washington Post. Fascinating, beautifully written story of a real woman who was born to great wealth and privilege, but money does NOT buy happiness.  Through circumstance, she had to deal with her husband's mental illness, then take over the family business. And if anybody had the RIGHT to a big head or an inflated ego, it surely would have been Katharine Graham.  But she remained humble and centered...

Personal History was the best non-fiction book I've read in many years. But, weighing in at 600+ pages, it took me WEEKS AND WEEKS to finish reading it.  My library will only allow you to renew a book twice, so for the third time, I had to have my cousin put it on her library card.

Maybe it took me so long to read because it was the holidays, and I only had small bits of time here and there.  But I never once thought about quitting...every day, I couldn't wait to pick it up and see what my new best friend, Kay Graham, was doing...

She lived during such an interesting time, and the wealth and power of her father, and then her husband changed the course of history.  It was compelling to read about how this woman came into her own...especially after her husband's suicide.  For the next 30 years, as owner and Publisher of the Washington Post, she WAS the only woman in the board room.  Literally.   In both Washington and New York City, she dealt with situations that no woman had ever encountered.  Before or since.

Katharine's friends were the most important people of our time -- President Kennedy,  Adlai Stevenson, President Johnson, Truman Capote,  Warren Buffet.  The Washington Post reported on the events that shaped history -- JFK's election, Civil Rights, the assassination.  And, in the case of the Watergate scandal -- the Post stood alone, against huge pressure and even retribution from the Nixon administration. 

I cannot remember ever reading a book that taught me so much about the world I live in. 

Katharine Graham is, herself, a wonderful writer.  But she tells her own story in a very critical voice. She was a full-time mother of four when her husband committed suicide.  She had no choice but to go to work, and she felt ill-prepared for the job she was forced to do.  She had no clue how to run a major newspaper, she encountered bias and hostility from her own employees...and she never believed she was the best person for the job.   She was always afraid she would disappoint people.  Her parents, her husband, her children, her employees, her stockholders...

But she was so genuine, so well-intentioned and hard-working -- I cannot imagine anybody who ever met with, worked with or loved Katherine Graham felt anything but admiration and respect. 

A=M=A=Z=I=N=G