Roach's Unbalanced and Dobson's Partners and Rivals

I recently came across two books which provide a scholarly overview on the economic relationship between China and the United States.

One is Unbalanced: the Co-dependency of America and China by Stephen Roach, Senior Fellow at Yale University and previous Chairman of Morgan Stanley Asia.  I found his premise that America needs to take a longer-term, strategic approach to be very thoughtful and persuasive.  Certainly, he stresses the signs of China’s forward planning and consequences of its increased emphasis on more internal consumerism while the US continues in its “bad habit” of limited savings. Our students could begin a discussion about whether and how US should revise its propensity for spending with a short Bloomberg clip of Roach commenting on his book (begins around 2:30), his New York Times article, “Chinese Reform, U.S. Stasis” and this slightly longer video from the Yale School of Management:

Or they could arrange to listen to the free webcast presentation from the Asia Society and featuring Professor Roach which is scheduled for April 16^th at 6:30 ET. 

Wendy Dobson’s Partners and Rivals: the uneasy future of China's relationship with the United States also focuses on US-China relations, talking about how both countries consider themselves to be exceptional.  She is a professor at the University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management and offers two strategic principles for cooperation: understanding that neither country can dominate the other and reducing mistrust between the two.  She develops an understanding based on past history, as shown in another short video:

Dobson’s book seemed like a possible summer read for AP Economics and made me think of Geography of Thought which shows how very hard it is to understand another country’s culture and way of thinking – especially between East and West  

Although we currently have several copies of more popular works by Fareed Zakaria and Thomas Friedman, I will be talking with teachers of both Advanced Chinese and Economics to gauge the level of interest in Unbalanced and Partners and Rivals. These two titles could provide additional perspective, particularly on economic issues and join What Chinese Want (Doctoroff), Walmart in China (Chan), and Where China Meets India (Thant Myint-U) on our library shelves.

The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin

I was SO excited to see this new title from Gabrielle Zevin --  I have been a fan since reading her award-winning Elsewhere. And The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry met my high expectations. This is an intriguing read, filled with allusions to numerous short stories. Readers can simply enjoy the details of A. J. Fikry's ever-changing life or choose to think more deeply about his careful selection of each story and its tie to subsequent events.

Fikry owns Island Books where "No Man is an Island, Every Book is a World" and is initially isolated and grieving for his wife.  "He is a reader, and what he believes in is construction….That is to say, what A. J. believes in is narrative." And what a narrative Zevin gives us; we are privileged to share in this affirming tale, to meet and develop affection for Ismay (sister-in-law); Lambiase (local police chief), Amelia (sales rep) and little Maya who sparks a remarkable transformation.   I certainly agree with other reviewers have described this novel as "funny,  tender and moving." 

If you consider yourself a "book person," or would like a story about fate and second chances, pick up The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry.  You can even meet Gabrielle Zevin later this month at The Book Stall in Winnetka or see her at Chicago’s Printer’s Row Lit Fest in early June.   CORRECTION per new info from the Book Stall:  Gabrielle Zevin will actually be at the Highland Park Library (949 Laurel) at 7pm on April 29th. 

Other recent "books about books" include Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan (Alex Award winner) and – for younger readers – Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library (by Grabenstein). After all, as A. J. notes, "People tell boring lies about politics, God, and love. You know everything you need to know about a person from the answer to the question: What is your favorite book?" 

Show Your Work! by Austin Kleon

Show Your Work! by Austin Kleon has chapters titled “Share Something Small Every Day” and “Think Process. Not Product” and is definitely worth a look.  I love the variety of people, including actors, writers, and athletes, who are quoted.  Just a sampling of some of my favorite advice to get us all thinking:

• Be an amateur: “That’s all any of us are: amateurs.  We don’t live long enough to be anything else.” ~Charlie Chaplin
• “A lot of people are so used to just seeing the outcome of work.  They never see the side of the work you go through to produce the outcome.” ~Michael Jordan
• “One day at a time.  It sounds so simple.  It actually is simple, but it isn’t easy.” ~ Russell Brand
• “Eventually, you will become stale. [However,] If you give away everything you have, you are left with nothing. This forces you to look, to be aware, to replenish…. Somehow, the more you give away, the more comes back to you.” ~Paul Arden

I will be featuring the book and sharing some of these ideas in an upcoming display – great discussion starters and super-useful when senior students are trying to find a meaningful yearbook quote.

I did try to read Show Your Work! online with the Bluefire reader and found that to be a rather clunky, frustrating experience. Instead, pick up a physical copy of Show Your Work!, a “little” book with a powerful message and try Kleon’s Steal Like an Artist, too.  Both will give you plenty to think about and many, many ideas to implement.

Thinkers 50 Innovation: Breakthrough Thinking to Take Your Business to the Next Level

The Thinkers 50 series (from Stuart Crainer and Des Dearlove) is a new and exciting one and recently I was able to look at both Leadership and Innovation.  I was impressed by the structure of the books – in 8 chapters, Leadership begins with “How We Got Here,” describes leadership traits, discusses “Followership” in Chapter 6 and then provides global examples and interviews experts in “Leaders at Work.”  Innovation: Breakthrough Thinking to take your Business to the Next Level includes comments by and Q&A with Don Tapscott (Grown up Digital), Clay Christensen (Disrupting Class), Harvard’s Linda Hill and others. 

I began to wonder what could be done to make these relatively short books, especially Innovation, more readily accessible for our own budding entrepreneurs taking classes in Consumer Education or working on Senior Project.  Unfortunately, while these titles are available for purchase on Kindle, they do not seem to be available as simultaneous use eBooks through Follett or another platform.  I do hope that the publisher considers this option, especially for libraries and schools. As we investigate non-fiction (Common Core) type reading, I do think that students who are required to take a business class for graduation would be intrigued by the essays in this book.   

In the meantime, students can watch the videos on the Thinkers 50 YouTube channel. Or explore more ideas from McKinsey, or BCG, and, of course, TedTalks. Here is a short video specifically about innovation, summarizing another book Where Good Ideas Come From:

   

 

The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender

The debut author’s brief bio notes Leslye Walton’s important work with students, whom she teaches to be “kind to one another, even on days when they don’t really feel like it.”  That idea carries through into this unusual novel, The Strange & Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender, where she explores what it feels like to be different, to be feared, to be rejected, to be loved and to love.  

The title character, Ava Lavender, is a typical teenage girl born in 1944 Seattle except for one thing: she was born with wings. Walton uses this idea and other elements of magical realism to share the stories of Ava and three earlier generations of women in her family. As we read about their life journeys, we share insights into love and acceptance, learning about “all the scars love’s victims carry” and from observations like these:

• She didn’t see it because when it came to love, she saw what she wanted to see…
• The whole world had given up on love anyway and clung instead to its malformed cousins: lust, narcissism, self-interest…
• She spent her days trying to forget the sound of his voice and her nights trying to remember…

Most poignantly, it takes Ava’s teenage male neighbor and friend to point out “that might just be the root of the problem: we are all afraid of each other, wings or no wings.”  Be ready for an unusual combination - myths, ghosts and your own introspection when you read this recommended book.