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Non-Fiction Book ReviewsPage One of TwoGeorge Bush: The Life of a Lone Star Yankee by Herbert S. ParmetScribner, Nov., 1997.Hardcover, 511 pages. ISBN: 068419452X. Ordering information: Amazon.com. | Amazon.co.uk 
By now the major parts of George Bush's life are well-known.
He grew up in a large, happy, orderly household in Greenwich,
Connecticut. After graduating from Phillips Andover Academy
he joined the Navy to become a highly-decorated pilot during World War II.
After the war, he graduated from Yale and moved to Midland, Texas,
where he built a successful oil business and established close
friendships which would aid him both in business and in his
public service career. After the Bushes moved their growing family
to Houston, Bush's business career continued to flourish, but he
yearned for public office and won a seat in the House of
Representatives after a failed bid for the U.S. Senate (in which
his father, Prescott Bush, Sr., had served). Bush served in other
political and government jobs (head of the Republican National
Committee, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, the first delegate
to China, and Director of the CIA) before becoming Vice president
under Ronald Reagan and, then President of the United States in 1988.
Reading an officially sanctioned biography may seem trite to some, but George Bush: A Lone Star Yankee is an important book to read during these troubling times, when the President and many of his current and former Cabinet members are scandal-ridden. For example, George Bush's commitment to improving race relations, private sector-led assistance for the needy, and a better education system were based on his notable efforts as a businessman, community leader, and public servant, not stolen from others and polished for the greatest appeal in response to public opinion polls. This telling of Bush's life story illustrates several important truths: that true public service is a valuable and rare thing; that character is important and does matter; that substance is more important than seduction; and that George Bush is a complex, thoughtful and dynamic world leader who should be remembered as one of this century's best presidents when judged on his accomplishments. A Lone Star Yankee reminds us that real leadership comes from solid credentials built on a record of success and action, not from a smooth tongue and a charming personality. --Doug Jacobson Making the Most of Your Money by Jane Bryant QuinnSimon & Schuster, Nov., 1997.Hardcover, 1066 pages. ISBN: 0684811766. Ordering information: Amazon.com. | Amazon.co.uk 
This financial resource by syndicated
financial columnist Jane Bryant Quinn
provides comprehensive answers to common
money related questions and concerns.
Topics addressed in the book include
banking, insurance, home-owning,
credit cards, wills and trust, debt reduction,
college tuition, investing, retirement
planning and more. The practical
advice in the book is enhanced with
checklists, tables and definitions
provided by the author. Appendixes
to the book include special tables that
help the reader calculate financial
needs and goals such as whether
you should you buy or rent, how
much you should save for retirement
and how much life insurance you need.
According to Quinn, the rules for the end of the 90s and the next millennium are to save early and often, take on less debt, be a better investor and control the risk in the investments you choose. These concepts and others addressed in Making the Most of Your Money can be put to use by those at any financial level, from those at the beginning of their careers to those near retirement. A well-written, timely and informative financial tool that will be consulted many times by its readers. Non-Fiction Reviews Page Two Return to Book Reviews Index ** To visit the archives of nonfiction books reviewed in The IWJ, please click here. |