My Reading List

Non-Fiction:

1. Mavericks at Work by William C Taylor & Polly G Labarre
2. History of God by Karen Armstrong
3. You've Got to Read this Book! by Jack Canfield & Gay Hendricks

Fiction:

1. The Other Queen by Philippa Gregory
2. The Queen's Fool/The Virgin's Lover by Philippa Gregory (double volume)
3. The House of Blue Mangoes by David Davidar

All by the end of the year. Ambitious, no?

The Outliers

Author: Malcolm Gladwell

I'm not quite sure how to classify Malcolm Gladwell's books - business, sociology, self-improvement? - but they definitely make for interesting reading.

This book deals with success, or rather the contributing factors to success. In a way, he demystifies the concept of sheer outstanding talent, and highlights instead the importance of opportunities, circumstances and even family background.

What I found interesting was his acknowledgement that certain races (Chinese, Jewish) are more successful in specific industries or activities, but that it has nothing to do with genes. Instead, it is the result of cultural traits shaped by such things as geography and history.

I found it relevant to support the current industrial need for capability development, especially the 10,000 hour rule (the minimum amount of time you need to spend practising something to become an expert in that area). Assuming it's your full time job, at 40 hours a week, that'll amount to almost 5 solid years before becoming a specialist.

The Tipping Point

Author: Malcolm Gladwell

This book talks about creating and spreading change as epidemics - mostly in a socio-cultural context, but he also draws references from the spread of diseases. Pretty interesting stuff, with a lot of case studies ranging from history, children's television, smoking and crime.

Ultimately, it boils down to 3 main factors:

1. The persons involved - Connectors, Mavens & Salesmen
2. The form of the message - Stickiness Factor
3. The environment - Power of Context

Item 1 explains the 3 different types of personality that you need in a Change Agent - they must either have a lot of contacts (Connector), a lot of information (Maven) or a lot of enthusiasm (Salesman). Sometimes a Change Agent may be a combination of two or all three.

lThe second issue deals with the nature of the message, and here the book shares different strategies that one can use to make the message more appealing and sticky.

Lastly, change can only stick if the environment allows it - a horseman riding through the night, for example, is more memorable than one riding in broad daylight.

All in all, it kept me hooked - and that's a lot to say for a piece of non-fiction. I'd make this compulsory reading for those working in Change Management. And also for parents with very youn children.

Tempted by Words

From the departure hall to the boarding gates at KLIA, one has to walk past the duty-free section with your usual array of perfumes, chocolates and toys. One of my weaknesses was also there: books. I almost always end up buying something to read when I travel alone, even when I already have a book in tow.

This time, the promotion (10% discount for 2 books, 15% discount for 3) really caught my attention. Initially all I wanted was a magazine that cost less than RM10. But then a fictionalised history snared me. 5 minutes later, by the time I left the cashier, I had exchanged RM120 for a magazine, a novel and two other books. It almost cost me my flight, too.

I haven't started on any of them yet, though. I still have my original travel companion to finish.

Inkheart

Author: Cornelia Funke

I bought it almost a year ago, just after the movie came out. I really wanted to watch the movie, but wanted to read the book before catching the celluloid version. Anyhow, the book took much longer than expected - I stopped reading it halfway several months ago and only picked it up again several weeks later. By then movie was no more, and I had lost interest in it anyway.

It is, after all, a children's book. The beginning was eventful enough, almost like 'Lord of the Rings' with an apparent stranger suddenly showing up, and seemed to set the pace quickly enough. Halfway through, however, I realised that while it would have been terrifying enough for a 12-year-old, it did not have enough suspense to keep me hooked. The 'diabolical celebrations' seemed pretty tame for this mother of three.

What I like about the book, though, is the way it is structured.

This book was written by a book-lover, about book-lovers, for book-lovers.

'Inkheart' precedes each chapter with an excerpt from another book. The excerpt sets the tone for the story, such as the following before Meggie and her father start their journey 'Going South' with apprehension:

"Beyond the Wild Wood comes the Wild World," said the Rat. "And that's something that doesn't matter, either to you or to me. I've never been there, and I'm never going, nor you either, if you've got any sense at all."

Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows

And so, while the story itself may not make it one of your all-time favourites, you may be introduced to several that may.

Ceritalah: Malaysia in Transition

Author: Karim Raslan

This book is a collection of articles written for 'The Sun' between 1994 and 1995 - divided into 4 main segments; as well as a piece from the New Straits Times Annual 1994.

The articles cover the following aspects of Malaysia: Culture & Society, Political Life, People & Places and a special segment covering the 1995 Election.

Throughout the pieces, the writer explores and addresses the contradictions of his upbringing and his world view - his father was born into Perak nobility, while his mother is an Englishwoman. After his father's death, his family relocated to England. He is, as he claims, 'a child of the NEP' but like many who have benefitted from it through overseas education, is not 'without criticism of the policy'.

The single article from the New Straits Times, entitled 'Roots', takes us down a personal memory lane as the writer recalls the events surrounding his father's death and reminisces the 'olde Worlde' Perak that his father was born into. It is an interesting piece that highlights a turning point in the social and cultural aspects of our nation's history - the line dividing the past and post-independent Malaya, the gaps between different generations. There is a hint of melancholia as the writer attempts to put together an image of a father he lost at the young age of 7.

The Culture & Society and People & Places segments showcases the best of his writing - the sharp observations, the self-deprecating humour and his candid feelings about his surroundings and his sociocultural background. You could almost picture him sauntering along the pavements of Cape Town or drinking 'oily black coffee' in Taiping through the descriptions of the places he visits.

In the Political Life segment, he writes of several prominent political figures - Dr Mahathir, Anwar Ibrahim, Hishamuddin Hussein. Here, I felt, he was a bit guarded - almost as if he was afraid to toe the line. He admits as much in one article which was a follow-up to a piece written on Dr Mahathir. To quote another essay from another segment,

"Basically, you're damned if you're boring and damned if you're not. Which leaves the half-world between the 'lines' as your only refuge."

Since the articles were written back in 1995, it is interesting to note the differences between what was a foregone conclusion then and what has actually unfolded 14 years since. This is especially so when the subject is Anwar Ibrahim, who was at the zenith of his UMNO career back then. In an article entitled 'Follow The Leader,' this is what the author says about the prospect of Anwar, then the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, succeeding Dr Mahathir as the country's Premier:

"To be frank, we have little chance of altering what is a done deal. When the time comes, there will be the transition from PM to DPM and that will be that.
We will clap our hands on the sidelines and then go back to work. Under normal circumstances, I would complain like hell because I don't feel that I, as a Malaysian voter, have had very much say in the appointment and selection of the next PM. However, the man chosen is bright, intelligent, well-read, ambitious and determined - all the ingredients needed for the job.

My concern now lies with the question: who will the DPM be looking to in turn to succeed him?"

Well, we all know how THAT turned out, don't we?

Good Omens

Authors: Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman

I was in one of those moods when I picked this book. Correction: My sister picked it out for me from her vast collection of fantasy at my request for something 'light and fun' to read. Halfway through the the 2nd chapter, I realised it was a parody of 'The Omen' (not something I particularly want to think about while I'm pregnant) but was already having too much fun to stop.

The story revolves around an angel, Aziraphale (Israfil, peniup sangka kala?) and a devil called Crowley, the serpent who tempted Eve to eat the forbidden fruit. Both of them were stationed on Earth as agents of their respective Masters to put things in place leading up to the Apocalypse. However, after spending thousands of years on this world with only each other as familiar company and having acquired a taste for earthly pleasures, they strike a partnership to avoid the Apocalypse from happening.

Trust Pratchett to come up with the hilarious dialogue. And you can always bet on Gaiman to provide the 'other dimension' to your everyday objects and people, like War and Pollution. Okay, so War and Pollution is not exactly everyday stuff but what else do you read about in the news?

It seemed close to blasphemy reading this novel (God knows what was going through their minds while they wrote it), but admittedly it was just too good to put down. Even if you're not planning on reading the whole book, at least read the authors' biography:

For those who really need to know, Terry Pratchett was born in
Buckinghamshire, England, in 1948. He has managed to avoid all the really interesting jobs authors take in order to look good in this kind of biography. In his search for a quiet life he got a job as a Press Officer with the Central Electricity Generating Board just after Three Mile Island, which shows his unerring sense of timing. Now a full-time writer, he lives in Somerset with his wife and daughter. He likes people to buy him banana daiquiris (he knows people don't read author biographies, but feels this might be worth a try).

Neil Gaiman used to be a journalist, but gave it all up to write
comics, which he claims are a totally valid late-twentieth-century art form, and he's even won awards for them, so that's all right. He's 5'11" tall, owns a number of black T-shirts, and although he's not overly keen on banana daiquiris, is always very flattered when appreciative fans send him money (he's read Terry Pratchett's biography, and, although he doubts that this will have any effect, figures what the hell).

Now excuse me, but I need to go catch up on all those Discworld novels.