Posted on 02/15/2013 6:24:33 AM PST by marktwain
I rarely do book reviews. I not only don’t have time, but I’m actually uncomfortable doing them. That’s because if I don’t care for a book enough to recommend it, that is, to put my name behind an endorsement and encourage readers to buy a copy, I realize it’s generally simply a matter of subjective preference, so I don’t figure it’s my place to publicly rain on someone’s labor of love, hopes and hard work. And that’s why my policy is I will only give good reviews.
None of this is to say books I’ve chosen to not review are bad, but simply something about them and me did not mix. And that’s not to say I don’t struggle with myself on books I end up choosing to promote.
I had to do just that with “Essential Liberty” by Rob Olive, and the internal deliberation surprised me because it’s a well-written, movie-paced page-turner that lives up to its self-description: “A Thriller.” You put it down, you want to get back to it. At least I did.
My problem was being able to relate some of the characters to plausible individuals relatable to my own experiences, until I realized that I was being guilty of shallow, knee-jerk reactions. And that’s where I found real strength in what I first perceived as potential disqualifiers.
No, you’d never have federal agents who would risk their careers and more to do the right thing, would you? And then I recalled some of the whistleblowers I’ve worked with on Fast and Furious who did exactly that.
No, you’d never have a “gun control”-supporting journalist put aside his biases, open his mind and make sharing the truth his goal, would you? And then I read an honest, real-world admission from one who
(Excerpt) Read more at examiner.com ...
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