Book Discussion - Weds June 20th at Houston Central Market Community room - THE EDUCATION OF HENRY ADAMS, Chapter 1 through 10

[Alice Aman]

Hi everyone -

We're starting a new book next Wednesday, June 20th, 7pm-9pm. It's an
old classic called THE EDUCATION OF HENRY ADAMS with exceptionally
good reviews. We'll cover Chapters 1 through 10 this month (June) and
will continue reading in July (Chapter 11 through 21) and finish in
August (Chapters 22 through 35). Good time to join in the discussion.

Also, please note schedule change for Sept 19th. We voted for a new
title at our last meeting hoping to get better educated about
economics and taxes.

And if you don't have plans yet for July 4th, the Houston Great Books
Council is again sponsoring a discussion of a section of the
Constitution. The section this year is the "commerce clause". Check
out http://www.houstongreatbooks.net for more details. And for those
who haven't received a link to their latest newsletter, it can be
downloaded at: http://www.houstongreatbooks.net/newsletters/current.pdf

Hope to see you next Wednesday.

--Alice
http://www.houstonbookclubs.org/HoustonNonfiction/

===UPCOMING DISCUSSIONS =====================

For selections below, we will not be reading a full book per month.
Detailed schedule of how books will be partitioned (100 or 200 pages
or so per month) is available at
http://www.houstonbookclubs.org/HoustonNonfiction/


[Jun 20, Jul 18, and finishing on Aug 15]
--THE EDUCATION OF HENRY ADAMS by Henry Adams (publ 1907) 420 total pages
[Top 100 Modern Library list and Pulitzer Prize winner in 1919]
Printed privately in 1907 and published to wide acclaim shortly after
the author's death in 1918, The Education of Henry Adams is a
brilliant, idiosyncratic blend of autobiography and history that
charts the great transformation in American life during the so-called
Gilded Age.

[Sept 19]
--THE BENEFIT AND THE TAX BURDEN: TAX REFORM-WHY WE NEED IT AND WHAT
IT WILL TAKE [Hardcover] by Bruce Bartlett [publ 2012] 288 pages
[highly recommended by Kathy, a regular attendee of the group]
Written by a senior economist in the Reagan and Bush administrations
it is surprisingly fair in pointing out where our politics has not
been helpful in the debate on federal taxes and spending. Most of the
explanations of economics and tax policies are clear and easy to
understand without a degree in finance required.

[Oct 17 and finishing on Nov 21]
--THE SHALLOWS: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains by Nicholas
Carr (publ 2011) 228 total pgs
[2011 Pulitzer Prize finalist]
While the author tries to ground his argument in the details of modern
neuroscience, his most powerful points have nothing do with our
plastic cortex. Instead, he is most successful when he sticks to
cultural criticism, as he documents the losses that accompany the
arrival of new technologies.

[Dec 19, Jan 16 and finishing on Feb 16]
--THE ELEGANT UNIVERSE: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest
for the Ultimate Theory by Brian Greene (publ 2001) 464 total pgs
[2000 Pulitzer Prize finalist]
The author, a specialist in quantum field theory, believes that the
two pillars of physics - general relativity and quantum mechanics -
can be reconciled in superstring theory and gives the nonspecialist at
least an illusion of understanding--or the sense of knowing what it is
that you don't know. And that is traditionally the first step on the
road to knowledge.

[Feb 16 - also on meeting agenda is election of new titles - those who
have attended at least twice may submit up to two titles for the
ballot IN ADVANCE. Winners will lead discussion of the book they
suggested. Titles subject to review.]

[Mar 20, Apr 17 and finishing on May 15]
--LORDS OF FINANCE: The Bankers Who Broke the World by Liaquat Ahamed
(publ 2009) 505 total pages
[2010 Pulizer Prize]
The book is about events leading up to and culminating in the Great
Depression as told through the personal histories of the heads of the
Central Banks of the world's four major economies at the time:
Benjamin Strong Jr. of the New York Federal Reserve, Montagu Norman of
the Bank of England, Émile Moreau of the Banque de France, and
Hjalmar Schacht of the Reichsbank.