New books for January

Outliners The Story of Success, by Malcolm Gladwell, addresses the question, “Why do some people succeed far more than others?” To understand rates of success, it’s key to look at the culture of the person. Gladwell’s book “Outliners” uses examples of historically successful people and groups to back up his thesis. Someone with an interest in psychology or sociology would be the ideal candidate for this book.

The Handy Geography Answer Book, by Paul A. Tucci and Matthew T. Rosenberg, is essentially a reference book for the geologist. This reference book is filled with the questions and answers to commonly asked geological questions. For example, “Why did the sun never sets on the British Empire?” and, “How was Pompeii destroyed?”. You’ll have to check this book out if you want to know the answers to the many questions about the world and its geology in this handy reference book.

Perfect Madness Motherhood in the Age of Anxiety, by Judith Warner, is an inquiry into, “what’s gone wrong with the culture of parenting”? There is a lot of weight on modern mother’s shoulders to live up to an ideal standard of mothering. Which can also be termed “intensive mothering” or extreme mothering when a mother takes her role so seriously that she forgets about her needs? “Perfect Madness” is a great book to read if you’re interested in the modern mother’s predicament.

Born to Buy, by Juliet B. Schor, takes a look into the targeting of the market system especially in its relationship with children and their development. Schor explains how advertising is nearly everywhere and socializes children in what is cool and what they should buy to have that’s status. This is an excellent book to read if you’re interested in how advertising and marketing effect consumers and particularly children consumers.

Shoptimism: Why the American Consumer Will Keep On Buying No Matter What, by “Lee Eisenberg, takes a look into the economy. “Shoptimism addresses the questions, “Are you a Classic Buyer or a Romantic Buyer? Is there a “Buy button” buried in your brain? Are men and women all that different when they shop? And, Why do we keep on buying—and buying—in good times or bad? If any of the previous questions ignite curiosity this is a good book for you.