John S Favoites

Several years ago I selected my five favorite books as A Short History About Nearly Everything, Holes, End of Faith, The World is Flat, and Night of the Avenging Blowfish. Since then we have read many books that I have found to be equally enjoyable. I would put my favorite books in the same following categories:

1. History and interesting information
2. Children and young adults
3. Thought provoking
4. Important issues and events
5. Fun reads

I enjoy learning new things and no book had more general information than A Short History of Nearly Everything. We have read several historical books involving the presidents and politics, conflicts and wars, and adventures. We have also read books on science and the cosmos. It is difficult to choose a favorite in this category since each one addresses a different event, so I am stinking with Bryson's book over Endurance, Ship of Gold and the Deep Blue Sea, Killer Angels, Garfield and so many more. Bryson is such a good writer that he is able to present a tremendous amount of information in a book that is both enjoyable and understandable.

The children and young adult category has a few really good reads from The Education of Little Tree, to Harry Potter, to Holes, to Hunger Games. Even though Hunger Games is a young adult book I will have it edging out Holes. The series of books are exciting page turners based on a scary futuristic world.

The thought provoking books include Dave's psychological additions, studies on human nature, and religion. Many of our fiction books fall in this category. There is always Tuesdays with Morie and When Breath Becomes Air. I still find End of Faith extremely powerful and put it ahead of the rest in this group. The book addressing the disturbing consequences of religious extremism.

The books on important issues is similar to the previous category but a little more concrete. Stanley introduced us to a few books on politics that have help explain some things and Dave brought in a couple on medicine. Friedman's books on globalization and the middle east have been high on my list. I also liked Zakaria's book, Zanzabar's chest, and the recent books Muzzled and Hillbilly Elegy. However I have to pick one of the environmental books. There have been a several including The Once and Future World, Upsizing, and Getting to Green, but I will go with Countdown. Countdown takes on the urgency of the taboo subject of overpopulation.

The final category is fun reads and this includes so many really good books. John H. bought us many exciting and manly books and Bob bought us a variety of fun stories. I still like the silly comedies like Blowfish, Me Talk Pretty Some Day, and Good Monkey. I really liked The Art of Racing in the Rain and The Art Forger, but I will go with the groups only perfect 5, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. The book had interesting characters, settings, suspense, and story line.

Politics

The group is made up of half Democrats and half Republicans. A couple of the wives are actively involved in local and state politics and we each have our opinions. There are no Trump supporters in the group, however there is a varied level of support for Hillary. We have read books about California politics, immigration, the primary system, and several presidents. Political books include Don't think about an Elephant, California Crack Up, Mexifornia, Let the People Rule, Garfield, The Limits of Power, The President's Club, The Big Burn, and Getting to Green. 

We have shared our political thoughts from the end of the Clinton administration, though the Bush W. years, and now through the rest of the Obama years. We have discussed the effects of 911, the Iraq war, the recession, global climate change, immigration, and a host of other local and national issues.

The current selection of Hillbilly Elegy helps to give a perspective on the latest presidential election. Speaking of the latest election, Bob wrote: The white middle class workers voted from their fear that their place in our society is shrinking. That fear is not likely to be changed by President Trump. But we now can add the fears of 20 million who will lose their health care, the 3 million Muslims and other minorities who will fear their place in America, the fear of 15 million Hispanic families who have undocumented members of their families, the fears of our global partners who fear a move to isolation and the fear of consumers that regulations protection will be dismantled. As our new President might say, Sad. Several of us have since weighed in on the event and are generally surprised and disappointed with the outcome. 

In the meeting following the election the group discussed the direction of the nation. The book Hillbilly Elegy did not provide much insight for the plight of blue collar workers in America. It is a nice story about what one individual can do with a few good role models and some military training. America and the world will continue to evolve with greater diversity, automation, and globalization regardless of the recent election. Blue collar jobs will continue to disappear and we discussed Musk's idea of a universal basic income. In the mean time we will have to endure some bumps in the road.

Book club is a unique opportunity for eight guys to openly discuss politics in a lively yet civil forum.

Members

The No Name Book Club is made up of eight men between 62 and 80. When we started 18 years ago we were all working professionals consisting of a medical doctor (Dave), lawyer (Bob), psychologist (David), head master (John H), college science professor (Stanley), entrepreneur (Bill), business consultant (Paul), and accountant (John S). We are now mostly retired but actively involved in many pursuits. Member hobbies include wood working, golf, traveling, surfing, bird watching, gardening, spending time with kids and grand kids, and reading. The group includes highly successful individuals that are experts in their field, not to mention their accomplished children.
Politically we are all over the board from fiscal conservatives (Paul and Bill) to progressives (Bob, Stanley and David). Dave, John H, and John S are somewhere in between. Each of us have our own causes and passions. Stanley is a strong supporter of public education, science, and local politics. John H is an expert on primary and secondary education. John S is deeply concerned with the environment. Bob is an advocate for the under-served working class. Paul and Bill believe in the power of innovation and technology. Dave and David continue to be passionate concerning the fields of medicine and mental health.
As a group we are able to discuss issues openly from different points of view with respect to each other's feelings. It has proven to be a great way to get a different perspective on issues. Lastly they are all nice guys that you enjoy hanging out with.

No Name Book

Alright, here is my plan for a coffee table book for the No Name Book Club. I have set up something on Blurb with the following suggested Chapters:
Introduction
History and members
Food and drink
Politics and other major topics
Fiction
Book ratings and our 5 favorite books
Epilogue
The idea is to post each of the chapters on the blog and encourage input from everyone. We already have a start on History, Book Ratings, and Other major topics. The final product will be a 8 1/2 by 11 hardback book with a minimum of 20 pages. Please update your book ratings and I welcome your input and suggestions.

Hillbilly Elegy

I recently saw J.D. Vance on PBS discussing his book. The following is link to a TED talk https://www.ted.com/talks/j_d_vance_america_s_forgotten_working_class?language=en and a link to an article by David Brooks http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/28/opinion/revolt-of-the-masses.html. I see he also was on CNN, ABC, NBC, and covered in the New Yorker as well. He is getting a lot of attention and helps to explain the phenomenon of Mr. Trump.

From Bill...

About the Book 

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER 

"You will not read a more important book about America this year."—The Economist 

"A riveting book."—The Wall Street Journal

"Essential reading."—David Brooks, New York Times

From a former marine and Yale Law School graduate, a powerful account of growing up in a poor Rust Belt town that offers a broader, probing look at the struggles of America’s white working class

Hillbilly Elegy is a passionate and personal analysis of a culture in crisis—that of white working-class Americans. The decline of this group, a demographic of our country that has been slowly disintegrating over forty years, has been reported on with growing frequency and alarm, but has never before been written about as searingly from the inside. J. D. Vance tells the true story of what a social, regional, and class decline feels like when you were born with it hung around your neck.

The Vance family story begins hopefully in postwar America. J. D.’s grandparents were “dirt poor and in love,” and moved north from Kentucky’s Appalachia region to Ohio in the hopes of escaping the dreadful poverty around them. They raised a middle-class family, and eventually their grandchild (the author) would graduate from Yale Law School, a conventional marker of their success in achieving generational upward mobility.

But as the family saga of Hillbilly Elegy plays out, we learn that this is only the short, superficial version. Vance’s grandparents, aunt, uncle, sister, and, most of all, his mother, struggled profoundly with the demands of their new middle-class life, and were never able to fully escape the legacy of abuse, alcoholism, poverty, and trauma so characteristic of their part of America. Vance piercingly shows how he himself still carries around the demons of their chaotic family history.

A deeply moving memoir with its share of humor and vividly colorful figures, Hillbilly Elegy is the story of how upward mobility really feels. And it is an urgent and troubling meditation on the loss of the American dream for a large segment of this country.