Book Review: Where Men Win Glory by Jon Krakauer

There are only a few writers that I will pretty much read anything and everything that they write: Donald Miller, Bill Simmons, and Jon Krakauer are definitely on the must read list for me. Krakauer's latest book is about Pat Tillman and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. I really enjoyed the background on Afghanistan and Tillman. Tillman is an ASU alum and I taught at ASU from 2004-2008 so I feel a small connection to him (I also feel a connection to Krakauer because I rode mountain bike with him for 3 days in Utah once upon a time). After the detailed background, the book focuses on Tillman's death and the subsequent cover-up. It is very well written.

Reading this book will make you more informed --- doesn't everyone want to be more informed. You will read about some incredible individuals, some frustratingly stupid individuals, and individuals that fall somewhere in between. I highly recommend this extraordinary book. Grade: A-.

Book Reviews

I read a couple books recently that discuss Game Theory, Sociology, and Economics.

Rock, Paper, Scissors: Game Theory in Everyday Life by Len Fisher. The focus of this book is on the basics of game theory (a branch of mathematics) and its applications to 'everyday life'. The book emphasize the importance of cooperation and how to obtain cooperation in situations where it may not be obvious. Fisher is an excellent writer and the book is fairly easy to read. So easy to read, that I would have actually preferred a little more mathematics along the way. I would suggest this book to anyone interested in learning about the types of problems game theory can address. Grade: B

The Logic of Life: The Rational Economics of an Irrational World by Tim Harford. This book is basically a collection of summaries of behavioral economic studies that yielded interesting results. Harford tends to focus on studies that show mathematically (and often using game theory) that the decisions we make are rational. The book is similar to Freakonomics or Predictably Irrational except those books were written by the researchers that did the studies while Harford mostly describes the work of others. The book is well written and had a few especially interesting sections, but, overall, it felt a little recycled. Grade: C+

Author's Note

Donald Miller is the greatest living author (and Bill Simmons is second). Here's the authors note from Donald Miller's latest book (A Million Miles in a Thousand Years):

"If you watched a movie about a guy who wanted a Volvo and worked for years to get it, you wouldn't cry at the end when he drove off the lot, testing the windshield wipers. You wouldn't tell your friends you saw a beautiful movie or go home and put a record onto think about the story you'd seen. The truth is, you wouldn't remember that movie a week later, except you'd feel robbed and want your money back. Nobody cries at the end of a movie about a guy who wants a Volvo.

But we spend years actually living those stories, and expect our lives to feel meaningful. The truth is, if what we choose to do with our lives won't make a story meaningful, it won't make a life meaningful either.

Here's what I mean by that..."

Follow-up: I just finished the book. Excellent -- certainly in my top 10 all time. Grade: A