Book Reviews

Rivals by Bill Emmott

First the disclaimer: This is a personal review of the book. I do not claim to be a literary expert or professional reviewer.

How the Power Struggle Between China, India, and Japan Will Shape our Next Decade: Rivals had a good combination of history, geography, economics, and politics. One of the first books I've read that explores the interconnected history of these three countries. It is an interesting look at how these global countries have interacted in the past and potential areas of concern for the future. It really demonstrates how complex the issue of "super Asia" is and will become in the future. The book frequently addressed how the issues affected the United States. The author finished with recommendations on courses of action not only for the three countries but the US as well. The last chapter on recommendations seemed somewhat out of place, but did tie up the previous chapters discussions.

Overall, I would give it 4 stars out of 5 stars.

China, Inc. by Ted C. Fishman

First the disclaimer: This is a personal review of the book. I do not claim to be a literary expert or professional reviewer.

After reading Chindia, I wanted to learn more about the atmosphere in China. This book seemed to fit that bill. I particularly liked the discussion on the entrepeneurship of the Chinese farmers and discussions on how business owners in China found ways to "capitalize" on their goods and services.

Overall, I would give it 4 stars out of 5 stars.

Chindia edited by Pete Engardio

First the disclaimer: This is a personal review of the book. I do not claim to be a literary expert or professional reviewer.

I enjoyed this collection of BusinessWeek articles regarding China and India. It covers numerous topics including environmental concerns and copycat/piracy issues. Good read for anyone looking to understand these two super countries.

Overall, I would give it 5 stars out of 5 stars. Good information on China and India.

Flawless Execution by James D. Murphy

First the disclaimer: This is a personal review of the book. I do not claim to be a literary expert or professional reviewer.

First, I love the subject! Execution is extremely important and is often times, overlooked in discussions and training sessions. The author, James D. Murphy, has based the book and the theory on the concepts he learned as a fight pilot with the US Air Force. He has excellent credentials and is very knowledgeable on the subject.

The book is easy to read and to the point - two things I find very important. The content is good and caused me as the reader to think about areas in which I fall short in execution. The model he describes is easy to use and can be applied to everyday business situations. It is important for the reader to relate the model to his or her own experiences, though.

The book has a tendency to be in "pilot" or "military" speak which may be a little difficult for non-military readers to sift through. And, while I understand that Mr. Murphy's execution model is based on his fighter pilot experience, there were times that the pilot references and examples were overused. And with this statement, I must confess that I am an USAF Aircraft Maintenance Officer and the pilot/mx officer communities can sometimes be at odds - much like sibiling rivalry. And, therefore, my belief that the pilot concept was overused may not be entirely objective.

Overall, I would give it 4 stars out of 5 stars. Good lessons on execution, good practical application for readers, good read, a little heavy on "fighter pilot".

Leadership by Rudy Giuliani

First the disclaimer: This is a personal review of the book. I do not claim to be a literary expert or professional reviewer.

I picked up Leadership to learn more about Mr. Giuliani particularly as he makes a run for the Presidency. The book contains good leadership lessons including surrounding yourself with the best people, effective use of performance measures, and communication among others. He does a good job of showing the "softer" side of leadership when he tells stories of attending funerals and going to the hospital to support city workers. Readers can pick up good leadership lessons from the book although, at times, there was some redundancy.

I was initially concerned that the majority of the book would be focused on his response to the September 11th terrorist attacks and not give readers insight into day to day leadership. My concerns did not come to fruition. The book was a good balance between Mr. Giuliani's career prior to September 11th and his response in the days following.

It fell short in my opinion, in not providing readers with discussions of "lessons learned". There are very few, if any, references to situations that Mr. Giuliani should have handled differently. As much, if not more, can be gained by analyzing how something could have been handled better as can be gained from reciting all the successes.

Overall, I would give it 2 stars out of 5 stars. Good leadership lessons, but lacks lessons learned and at times was redundant.