Welcome to Chris Brady's Blog

"The only way to be happy, is to give happy."

Recent Posts:

"These are not books, lumps of lifeless paper, but minds alive on the shelves. From each of them goes out its own voice . . . and just as the touch of a button on our set will fill the room with music, so by taking down one of these volumes and opening it, one can call into range the voice of a man far distant in time and space, and hear him speaking to us, mind to mind, heart to heart." – Gilbert Highet

"My education was the liberty I had to read indiscriminantly and all the time, with my eyes hanging out." – Dylan Thomas

"There is more treasure in books than in all the pirates’ loot on Treasure Island . . . and best of all, you can enjoy these riches every day of your life." – Walt Disney

"I am a part of all that I read." – John Kieran

"Show me the books he loves and I shall know the man far better than through mortal friends." – S. Weir Mitchell

"The man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who can’t read them." – Mark Twain

Posted in Books

6 responses to “Books and Reading”

Owen Derry

January 18, 2008

Chris:
As I read more and more, I notice that I am connecting the books, relating them more and more to each other. As a quick example, in Good to Great, Jim Collins talks about leaders in the beginning of the book. He says that companies with great leaders (Level 5 leaders in LLR parlance) do several things, and the book describes all these things. However, he mentions that he does not know how Level 5 leaders become Level 5 leaders, but once a company has an L5 leader(s), things begin to happen.
When I read this, I immediately thought of LLR. Good to Great is definitely a wonderful book. However, it only assumes that an L5 leader is needed, but does not show how to become one. It’s like the two economists stuck in a pit with a lion and they start writing and drawing: “Assume a ladder…”
As I start piecing these books and their concepts together instead of seeing them as stand-alones, I start to see and feel the compounding affect of learning.
It’s really neat!!

LikeLike

Reply
Chris Brady

January 20, 2008

Owen Derry:
Thanks for sharing here on this blog. I think you have hit on something interesting about Collins’ five levels. We were very excited to learn from GOOD TO GREAT and how a Level 5 leader operates and gets results, but like you, we felt that there wasn’t much out there that talked about the specific way to attain such a level. Hopefully our (Orrin Woodward and myself) book does that. I am glad you are getting something out of all of this and putting the pieces together. That is truly one of the biggest blessings of reading, and then applying your reading to your leading! Lead on!
Chris

LikeLike

Reply
Donise Warsaw

January 21, 2008

I am looking for book suggestions appropriate for a 4th grade boy. He is in a home that is challenging and he wants to read about people that grew up in similar situations and became successful. I appreciate any help you can offer. Thank you.
Donise Warsaw

LikeLike

Reply
Chris Brady

January 21, 2008

Donise:
A great question. There are several I could recommend.
1. “Oliver Twist,” Charles Dickens
2. “Bud not Buddy” (can’t remember the author)
3. any books on Ronald Reagan who grew up with an alcoholic father
4. (I would recommend the publisher A BEKA who produces a great line of biographies in that age range called “The Sons of Liberty Series.”
Those are the ones I can come up with (and I even consulted my heavy-reading ten year old!).
I would like to put it to the readers of this blog to make suggestions also. Certainly if we all pooled together on this one, there could be some additional excellent titles! Thanks to everyone, and I hope that helps Donise. Have a great day and we’ll pray for that young man.
Chris

LikeLike

Reply
Anna

January 21, 2008

Donise, I don’t know if this book exactly fits the bill that you are looking for, but “Sign of the Beaver” by Speare is a book about a young boy who ends up by himself for almost a year to tend for a new home for his family while waiting for them to arrive. He is challenged with many things, and of course, it is set in early American history, but it is a book that instills courage and character in the reader. I read it with my 9 year old daughter and we both cried (well, I did at least!). Hope this helps, Anna

LikeLike

Reply
Rodger Hamel

February 1, 2008

After reading “The World is Flat” I checked out something similar http://www.christianbooksummaries.com/archive.php?v=3&i=47
Great Blog
Thanks
Rodger Hamel

LikeLike

Reply