The Secret Of Life!

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Goodreads' "stock" review includes "what starts out as a journey to find worldly goods turns into a discovery of the treasure found within." That is only partially true, and that pleases me, reminding me of arguments decades ago with a thoughtful friend who said, "No, Harry, you cannot be a materialist, not with your values!" I argued that my values were rooted in an appreciation of this earth and all the riches and potential for human success, fulfillment and happiness it holds for us, if we are but wise enough to real-ize this. This "material" earth, where we have the means to express any spiritual dimension that we have cultivated within us. Yikes, where did that come from? I meant to write about The Alchemist, not Harry. So one of my "advisors" (in this case that means one of the authors whose books I actually purchase rather than just borrow from the library) Brendon Burchard repeatedly praises this book, so I thought I would give it a try. I finished it two months ago, it took that long to feel ready to write about it. (I wrote this on March 18th but posted it here on the date I read the book.) I really didn't need to read beyond the third page of the introduction. Haven't I said to all my friends for decades that I was searching for the secret of life? Well, there it was clearly spelled out, "The secret of life,though, is to fall seven times and to get up eight times." However, I did go on to read the book, and enjoyed it thoroughly. The only reason I'm giving it four stars instead of five is that it has been so hyped and promoted that no book could live up to the expectation created. You should read this book for yourself so you can decide for yourself. If you are a long-time reader of inspirational works, this may remind you of the old "Acres of Diamonds" story, but it is richer and deeper than that.

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Who are the Unsung Heroes?

The Entrepreneur: America's Great Unsung Hero by Robert Ringer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was disappointed when Robert Ringer re-titled the revised edition from "Winning Through Intimidation" to "To Be or Not to Be Intimidated," even though I witnessed how the book was misrepresented - mostly by people who had never read it - based simply on the title. I liked his explanation of the original title that likened his attitude to Ayn Rand's when she said that the reason she used the title "The Virtue of Selfishness" was to make people think. I was similarly sad when some of his later works, when listing "also by the author" titles, often omitted "How You Can Find Happiness During the Collapse of Western Civilization." I found that one to be extremely thought provoking. I don't agree with everything he says, and would love the opportunity to discuss some day with Ringer my "barn raising" concept about the value of public enterprises such as the public library ( http://harrythelibrarian.blogspot.com... ) peacefully coexisting with private enterprise for most endeavors. In the meantime I always enjoy reading his thoughts and words. This one is pretty quick reading for such a thoughtful subject. A clue to his valueing of the Entrepreneur's approach to life can be found on page 43: "The Entrepreneur embraces failure, because he understands that each failure brings him one step closer to success. And it goes without saying that the honest Entrepreneur does not want government help when he fails. On the contrary, what he wants is for the government to leave him alone." Near the end, on page 275 he says "It is the entrepreneurial spirit that has always moved America forward, which is why I believe it is the Entrepreneur who is most capable of leading the charge to resurrect the American way of life that our parents and grandparents experienced. And if he can accomplish that gargantuan feat, he will rightly deserve to take his place alongside George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and other giants of the American Revolution.

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