Delmio.com » Explorations

Grisham returns to form

Dave — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 15:02:37 +0000

Ever-busy John Grisham is back with what made him famous — legal thrillers. His latest, due out this month, might seem reminiscent to his breakout-novel-turned-movie, The Firm. In The Associate, bright and idealistic attorney Kyle McAvoy, fresh out of law school, lands a plum job at a plum firm only to find himself caught in a deadly web of intrigue and deceit.

Publisher DoubleDay has this to say: “With an unforgettable cast of characters and villains—from Baxter Tate, a drug-addled trust fund kid and possible rapist, to Dale, a pretty but seemingly quiet former math teacher who shares Kyle’s “cubicle” at the law firm, to two of the most powerful and fiercely competitive defense contractors in the country—and featuring all the twists and turns that have made John Grisham the most popular storyteller in the world, The Associate is vintage Grisham.”

If this all sounds familiar, rest assured it’s a new cast of characters and a different town, with all-new chase sequences (just a guess here).

For a sneak peek, CLICK HERE.

Bernard Fall: Memories of a Soldier-Scholar

Dave — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 18:25:27 +0000

Bernard Fall was a young doctoral student in 1953 when he began learning about the French occupation of Vietnam. The subject would become his life’s work as a military analyst, historian and author of six books on Vietnam.

His wife Dorothy referred to Vietnam as her husband’s “mistress” and it was Fall’s passion for documenting the war from the front lines that ended his life in 1967. And it was Dorothy’s determination to honor her husband’s quest for the truth that provided the impetus to write his memoirs.

In this exploration, we discover what made Bernard Fall risk and lose his life to record the French and American military quagmires in Vietnam. In light of the current military quagmire in Iraq, Fall’s insights are a timely reminder of the futility in using military solutions to solve political conflicts.

To further explore the story CLICK HERE.

You CAN Eat That!

Dave — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 14:48:35 +0000

A list of American kids’ favorite foods reads like fast-food menu: Burger? Check. Pizza? Check. Sundae? Double check.
The list has been wishful thinking to the more than 175,000 children and teens under age 20 who have diabetes. Until now. Robyn Webb’s new cookbook, You Can Eat That!, puts these dishes and many other children’s and teen-agers’ faves back on the menu.

The soft-cover book has 182 pages of recipes, tips and nutrition information, liberally sprinkled with mouth-watering photos. Webb, who has years of experience developing diabetes-friendly recipes, concentrates on the kind of foods kids like to eat – chicken fingers, trail mix, birthday cake, pizza, and milk shakes.

She packs each recipe with nutrition but pays attention to the flavor, too.

To see more, CLICK HERE.

The Black Swan

Dave — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 11:11:28 +0000

The Black Swan is not a fairy tale. Far from it. The Black Swan explains how sudden, unexpected events are the most powerful agents of change in the world. Change happens usually in violent spasms that, at least briefly, touch off chaos before a new order is instilled. In addition to challenging what he calls Platonic assumptions (focusing on the easily discernible), Nassim Nicholas Taleb exercises a mischievous sense of humor. He quotes Yogi Berra often: “You can observe a lot just by watching.” (epilogism) “It’s tough to make predictions about the future.” “The future ain’t what it used to be.” He gleefully bashes everything French (his parents are French citizens and he is fluent in French, so maybe he’s entitled to). He skewers the high-on-the-hog riders: “We humans have the largest cortex, followed by bank executives, dolphins, our cousins the apes.”

Having dwelt in the worlds of both academia and business gives him a rare perspective. He notes that being called a practitioner is an insult in academia, and being called academic is an insult in business.

On theory: “A theory is like medicine (or government): often useless, sometimes necessary, always self-serving, and on occasion lethal. So it needs to be used with care, moderation, and close adult supervision.”

Take your time with this book. Don’t take it to the beach. Expect to have some assumptions challenged. And expect to discover some new concepts.

To learn more, CLICK HERE.

Air Mask

DelMio Editor — Thu, 29 May 2008 15:49:04 +0000

Vanita Oelschlager’s book of poetry, Air Mask, began as a personal exercise just to serve as a sort of therapy for her long days as a caregiver for her husband, Jim. Jim has multiple sclerosis, but the issues a caregiver deals with are largely universal. A friend read the poems and told her, “You have to share these with others.” This Exploration, sponsored by Summa Health System, focuses largely on caregiving and caregivers. Vanita’s poetry speaks eloquently to the emotion and soul of the caregiver. DelMio and Summa aim to address education and support for caregivers, whether a wife, son, daughter, parent or sibling or friend.

Click Here for the Exploration

Why Good Things Happen to Good People

DelMio Editor — Sat, 10 May 2008 16:53:34 +0000

For centuries, people have sought the “secret formula” to happiness and a meaningful, long life. Now, scientific study has discovered a simple source: giving. Stephen Post, Ph.D., and journalist Jill Neimark have written the book Why Good Things Happen to Good People based on extensive research at universities across the United States. Authors Post and Neimark explore the studies and the people behind them, discovering the astonishingly simple “formula” and tell it in an engaging style.

Click Here for the Exploration

Not Your Mother’s Slow Cooker Cookbook

DelMio Editor — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:15:03 +0000

Far fewer than the 80 percent of Americans who own slow cookers use them on a regular basis. This book is an attempt to change that. Instead of the usual recipes for slow-cooked roasts and throw-together soups, it is filled with modern and ethnic-inspired recipes – 350 in all – for such dishes as Mexican black beans with pork, Caribbean jerked chicken, polenta, and veal stew with sun-dried tomatoes and rosemary. Award-winning food writer Jane Snow talks about remarkably versatile slow cookers, and shares a recipe for risotto from Not Your Mother’s Slow Cooker Cookbook.

Click Here for the Exploration

The Secret

DelMio Editor — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 23:19:44 +0000

Ask. Believe. Receive. In The Secret, Rhonda Byrne compiles the words of successful authors, businesspeople, spiritualists and scientists to explain the “Great Secret” woven throughout human history — the law of attraction.

Click Here for the Exploration

Water For Elephants

DelMio Editor — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 19:57:24 +0000

Water for Elephants is the story of a Great-Depression-era circus told through the memories of ninety-something-year-old veterinarian, Jacob Jankowski. Sara Gruen’s exhaustive research into the traveling circuses of the 1930s and 40s gives us a rare look into the fascinating, secretive subculture of that era’s big-top performers and roustabouts. Many of the most compelling anecdotes in Gruen’s well-told story are based on actual events.

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God Grew Tired of Us

Dave — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 22:42:37 +0000

The story of John Bul Dau’s childhood and early adulthood could be summarized by this prophesy: “This will be a black-haired time.” Which means: None of the people in Sudan will live long enough to have gray hair. It’s easy to turn off the news and lose interest in story after story of death and destruction in other parts of the world. We are inundated with images and stories about terrible pain and suffering all the time, and can become somewhat desensitized to it. Reading “God Grew Tired of Us” cuts through any desensitization and brings those feelings of sorrow and happiness, of pain and love, back into focus again.

Click here for the Exploration