andreweverett360 Book Review, General

A Full Life: Reflections at 90

A Full Life: Reflections at 90

by Jimmy Carter

Jimmy Carter was born on October 1, 1924 and was elected the 39th president of the United States in 1976. The world has changed a lot in the 100 years since Carter grew up in the segregated south. At the same time, many of the issues he writes about sound quite familiar, such as inflation, contested elections, and conflict in the Middle East.

I was surprised by Carter’s emphasis on fiscal discipline—something we haven’t seen in recent administrations. (At the end of the Carter administration, the national debt to GDP ratio was 32%. In 2022 it was 123%.) What also stands out is Carter’s cooperative relationships with presidents Gerald Ford and George H.W. Bush, in stark contrast to more recent polarization.

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andreweverett360 Book Review, General

WCVB-TV Boston: How We Built the Greatest Television Station in America

WCVB-TV Boston: How We Built the Greatest Television Station in America

by Robert M. Bennett (1927-2016)

In this memoir, the highlight of television executive Bob Bennett’s career was launching and growing WCVB-TV, Channel 5 in Boston. A major theme is his commitment to locally-produced programming. Another theme is Bennett’s leadership style, whereby he encouraged new ideas and risk-taking from his lieutenants, and inspired a sense of pride which brought out the best in people at all levels of the organization. It’s also a high-risk, high-reward story that could have turned out very differently.

The book is comprised of Bennett’s recollections interspersed with commentary from former colleagues.

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andreweverett360 Book Review, General

Every Life a Story: Natalie Jacobson Reporting

Every Life a Story: Natalie Jacobson Reporting

by Natalie Jacobson

Natalie Jacobson was a household name in greater Boston, with a 35-year career as a reporter and news anchor at WCVB, channel 5. For two decades the husband-and-wife team of “Chet and Nat” anchored the 6:00pm and 11:00pm weekday newscasts. This memoir includes stories of her personal life, career, colleagues, significant news events she covered, and some of the people she met. She also shares her views on the decay of broadcast journalism.

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andreweverett360 Book Review, General

WBCN and the American Revolution

WBCN and the American Revolution: How a Radio Station Defined Politics, Counterculture, and Rock and Roll

by Bill Lichtenstein  

WBCN was a Boston rock and roll radio station from 1968 to 2009. It was instrumental (pun intended) in launching the careers of major bands. It was also part of the social fabric of the Boston college scene. This book and a companion video documentary tell the story of the early years of the station in the context of the era.

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andreweverett360 Book Review, General

The Best We Could Do: An Illustrated Memoir

The Best We Could Do: An Illustrated Memoir

by Thi Bui

Thi Bui was born in Vietnam and immigrated to the United States as a child in 1978. Based largely on oral history from family members, she has written and illustrated their story, telling the history of Vietnam from 1943-1978 along the way. It is an engaging story presented in the style of a graphic novel.

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andreweverett360 Book Review, General

Simple Sabotage Field Manual

Simple Sabotage Field Manual

Office of Strategic Services
William J. Donovan, Director

The Office of Strategic Services (OSS) was the predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), operating during World War II. This 32-page manual instructs OSS officers on numerous ways citizen-saboteurs can be trained to gum up the works. “Simple sabotage is more than malicious mischief, and it should always consist of acts whose results will be detrimental to the materials and manpower of the enemy.”

“Simple sabotage does not require specially prepared tools or equipment; it is executed by an ordinary citizen who may or may not act individually and without the necessity for active connection with an organized group; and it is carried out in such a way as to involve a minimum danger of injury, detection, and reprisal… Try to commit acts for which large numbers of people could be responsible.” 

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andreweverett360 Book Review, General

The Death of Expertise

The Death of Expertise: The Campaign against Established Knowledge and Why it Matters

by Tom Nichols

This book is about the erosion of respect for facts, logical analysis, and critical thinking. Uninformed opinions carry the same weight as expert opinions. There is no vetting of dubious sources from credible sources. Beliefs are conflated with facts. It is in this climate that hoaxes, conspiracy theories, fake news, propaganda, and all manner of bullshit thrive. Tom Nichols, professor of national security at US Naval War College, examines this phenomenon and some of the causes, including higher education, technology, and the news media.

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