Scott J. Pearson

The Youngest Science: Notes of a Medicine-Watcher

By Scott J. Pearson | August 28, 2019April 1, 2020 by Scott J. Pearson

Lewis Thomas spent his life revolving around various aspects of medicine – apprenticeship, patients, research, administration, being a patient, and writing. In this memoir, he shares tales and insights from all of these experiences in an easy-to-digest and relatable format. I especially enjoyed his notes from his time as Dean of Yale’s medical school. Perhaps it’s because I work for an associate dean of medicine now. I appreciate his admonishments not to intervene too much…

Biography-Memoir History

41: A Portrait of My Father

By Scott J. Pearson | August 25, 2019October 11, 2019 by Scott J. Pearson

The notion of this book is very interesting. A Presidential biography written by a fellow President who is also a son. Parallels to the Adams family abound. George Bush the Elder, possessing a lifetime of experience in government, is like John Adams, also a one-term President. George W. Bush and John Quincy Adams are both sons who became President. Both sons had shortcomings which can be linked to their elite birth. Both sons knew how…

Fiction-Stories Management-Business

The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement

By Scott J. Pearson | August 22, 2019October 11, 2019 by Scott J. Pearson

This book helped define the genre of management books told as narrative fiction. It teaches management principles while allowing the reader to see what real management looks like in practice. This particular work even introduces a love story to the mix. This story tells the common tale of a generic manufacturing plant and a marriage in crisis. It’s in the ilk of a coming-of-age tale in which the main character Alex learns how to take…

Biography-Memoir

One Matchless Time: A Life of William Faulkner

By Scott J. Pearson | August 19, 2019October 11, 2019 by Scott J. Pearson

The name William Faulkner evokes a great deal of respect (and perhaps fear) from readers. He is known for long sentences that span more than one page. He is inescapably deep – an abyss. He sees into the Southern American male experience as no other and draws out truths that apply to all of humanity. His allure extends from the South into New England, across the Atlantic to France and down the isthmus to Latin…

Biography-Memoir Writing-Communication

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

By Scott J. Pearson | August 15, 2019October 11, 2019 by Scott J. Pearson

Stephen King is one of the most best-selling writers of all-time. In this book, which I read in a tenth-anniversary edition, King shares his insights into the process and lifestyle of writing. Obviously, these insights are of interest to writers who seek to improve their craft. Although I still prefer Strunk and White’s classic more than King’s, I am quite grateful to have spent the time to read this classic. Strunk and White harp on…

Biography-Memoir History Politics

A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety

By Scott J. Pearson | August 10, 2019October 11, 2019 by Scott J. Pearson

Jimmy Carter, America’s 39th president, has been much maligned for being a weak president. Certainly, there are things he wishes that he could redo. Nonetheless, it is interesting to see in this memoir what positive things he did accomplish and how honest he is about the unresolved problems of our world. Carter has been called the most-successful ex-president our country has ever had. He founded the Carter Center at Emory University and has spend a…

Fiction-Stories

The Overstory

By Scott J. Pearson | August 7, 2019October 11, 2019 by Scott J. Pearson

I must confess, I am no ardent environmentalist. I am very sympathetic towards causes and policies which manage the environment sustainably, even at the expense of economics. However, perhaps because of my Christianity, I find the aligning of human spirituality and nature somewhat strange. When I am in nature, I see the footprints of God. I definitely do not take a step further and worship nature. Powers’ book seems to take us along that path.…

Biography-Memoir History

Review: Catherine the Great

By Scott J. Pearson | August 6, 2019August 6, 2019 by Scott J. Pearson

Catherine the Great is indisputably one of the greatest women Europe has ever produced. She ruled Russia as an enlightened monarch and spread the philosophy of its prior pro-European monarch Peter the Great. She created an intellectual culture in Russia that blossomed with talent like Dostoyevski, Tolstoy, and Tchaikovsky. Ironically, she was not born a Russian but a German. Her marriage to a future king was a failure, but not due to her lack of…

Fiction-Stories Management-Business Software-Technology

Review: The Phoenix Project

By Scott J. Pearson | August 4, 2019August 4, 2019 by Scott J. Pearson

I’m reading this book to be prepared for a software launch that might happen in the next few months. I read a book like this to ensure that I am on top of my IT game when it comes to responding to life forces. Stories like this tell how powerful information technology can be at transforming organizations when coupled with a simple desire to learn from each other. Too often, those in IT keeps their…

Biography-Memoir History

Review: Chaucer

By Scott J. Pearson | August 1, 2019August 1, 2019 by Scott J. Pearson

Author of the Canterbury Tales (among other works), Geoffrey Chaucer is a pioneer of the English language from the late middle ages. He is eclipsed in his innovations perhaps only by William Shakespeare. Peter Ackroyd is a modern British historian and a worthy biographer of this giant. In this accessible series (read: short books), Ackroyd provides us with a great summary of what there is to know about Chaucer from historical records. Chaucer was not…