Tension City by Jim Lehrer – 4 stars

Hi All,

I just finished reading Jim Lehrer’s memoir about his role as moderator for 11 debates.

Positives:

1. The book is an easy read, only 200 pages.
2. Lehrer gives historical context for debates from 1960-2012. He also does a nice job explaining that debates are now a “must” on the way to being President or Vice President.
3. Lehrer discusses the Commission for Presidential Debates and explains the increasing independence of the Commission, especially over the last decade.
4. Lehrer references the debates held at William & Mary and University of Richmond. I think this connection back to the Commonwealth is important for our students.
5. The book details the history of debates, memorable moments, etc all while explaining Lehrer’s perspective as a moderator and his mistakes along the way. I appreciated that Lehrer discusses the amount of debate preparation needed, and how he would have done things differently.
6. Finally, I think this would arm our students with knowledge prior to the VP Debate.

Cons:

1. While its an easy read, parts of the book drag (in my opinion). The book also “time hops” a bit, so the reader does need to pay attention.
2. Some faculty may have a harder time using this in class. I don’t see that as an issue as I still pull out the central themes of democracy, history, how to overcome mis-steps, etc.

 

Overall, I like this book if we decide to focus our efforts on a book related to the debates.

 

-Jen

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Life After Death by Damien Echols

Life After Death by Damien Echols– 3 stars

Summary: This is the memoir of Damien Echols, the famous “leader” of the West Memphis Three. For anyone not familiar with their story (or the HBO documentary), the west Memphis three was the name given to a group of three men falsely accused of murdering three children in the early 90s. He was likely the victim of police discrimination based on his perceived appearance and religious identity.  Damien Echols spent 19 years on Death Row before being exonerated. This book is his retelling of the events that happened to lead up to his false conviction and his experiences in prison.

Pros:

• This is a very engaging read. Students will enjoy it and I think many of them will actually read it if assigned.
• The topics of prison, crime, police brutality are “hot topics” right now and themed throughout the book.
• Primary social issues directly addressed in the book include: class and religious identity
• About half of the book is comprised of actual letters/journal entries he wrote while he was in prison. This was pretty cool from the reader’s perspective. We got to see how he changed/grew over time.
• I did attend an event where Damien Echols spoke about the book and his experiences. As of last February, he dressed in all black with many tattoos, wore black sunglasses inside, and had black hair down past his shoulders. I think our students would be intrigued by him and captivated by what he has to say. Here is a link to the video from that event: http://ow.ly/JZoit

Cons:

• I think this book is over our maximum length at 392 pages.
• There is a strong religious theme to this book (and to the story of the West Memphis Three). Especially in some of the segments which were written while he was in prison, Damien writes some pretty negative and arguably offensive thoughts/feelings toward Christians, especially those who are more radical in their worship styles and evangelical approaches. I think some of our students might be highly offended and refuse to critically look past (or at) these parts of the book.

Overall, I know this is a successful FYRE book at many institutions. I think many of our students would enjoy it. I’m curious to see what others think about some of the religious references and how our students might respond.

 

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The Postmortal by Drew Magary

The Postmortal by Drew Magary – 5 stars

Summary: This novel depicts a dystopian future where human beings obtain access to a cure for aging. The book is comprised of journal articles written by one man over the course of 60 years when the cure is discovered, introduced into society, legalized, misused, etc. Topics directly covered in the book include: mortality, aging, genetic engineering, and assisted suicide. Overarching themes in the book include: politics, debate, various societal issues, right/wrong, altruism, selfishness, etc.

 

•  Positives:
  • This book is an exciting, easy read. I finished it within 2 days and I bet many of our incoming freshman will read it quickly, as well.  It matches their level, in my opinion.
  • The opportunities for discussion, critical thinking, and creativity from this book are endless. This can easily apply to a wide variety of majors, interests, etc.
  • I heard Drew Magary speak at the First Year Experience conference last February.  Honestly, I wouldn’t have read the book if I hadn’t enjoyed his speech so much. He focused his speech on how the book reflects the importance of (and often the lack of) self-awareness in one’s life. He tied self-awareness in beautifully with examples from the book and examples from his life as a college student. He is gritty, sarcastic, and probably curses a little too much.
  • Politics and social issues are an important focus of the book. Not directly connected to the upcoming debate but related conversations can easily be framed/connected.
  • There are multiple facilitation guides for this book in connection with FYRE programs. This book is one of the most widely used FYRE books across the country. Lots of resources for faculty and Peer Mentors to use.
• Negatives:
  • fiction—doesn’t tell a true story for our students to connect with. At the same time, however, the book is told from the perspective of one character so it is easy for the students to connect with a (fictional) person/story.
  • Drew Magary is just as expensive as Wes Moore to bring to campus.
  • This book is very popular as a FYRE book—this means there are probably plenty of summaries and student papers online for our students to snag (just like they have done with Wes Moore).
  • Maybe the front cover is intimidating/disturbing for some?
• 

Overall, I highly recommend this book for FYRE. Even if we don’t use it this year, I think we should keep it on the table for future years.

 

-Rachel

 

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