Has one of your ideas ever seemed like a good one at the time…until things went bad, your company lost money, and you lost face? So what did you learn? Author Megan McArdle says that most schools teach kids the basics but there’s no ‘How to Deal with Failure’ instruction, even though that’s something that “should have been taught in kindergarten.”
This book will help you take comfort with failing stories from GM, Coke, Enron, NASA, and others in “The Up Side of Down.” By using those cautionary tales to illustrate how failure happens and what becomes of a company after it errs, author Megan McArdle helps put failure into perspective. Purchase it here
To my generation, and even a few before me, when one hears the phrase “Duncan Hines,” images of boxes of cake mix flow through our imaginations. However, in author Louis Hatchett’s book “Duncan Hines: How a Traveling Salesman Became the Most Trusted Name in Food,” he tells the tale of a man who rose to prominence through his self-published guides to American restaurants.
Hines was a traveling salesman for a direct mail advertising firm, and his innate knack for food and cooking was long in progress. Naturally, along the way, he recorded accounts of the best restaurants in the country. According to Hatchett, anyone younger than the age of 55 recognizes the man for his trustworthy knowledge. So sit back this weekend, maybe with some homemade cake, and check out the true story of the man behind the cake namesake. Purchase it here
It happens every day of your life, it takes up about seven hours of your day and it’s been a common ritual since the beginning of time. Sleeping. We need it. We crave it. We love it. But why? It’s not like we can describe sleep while we sleep. Scientists aren’t even sure. But it’s an innate attribute that every human being exhibits.
Sleep habits run along social and cultural lines, and work often influences our bedtimes and outta-bedtimes. And, studies show that too little sleep is a big problem in this country. But so is too much. In “The Secret Life of Sleep,” author Kat Duff takes a look at sleep, beginning with the perfect almost-there sweet spot and ending with a good examination of the future of slumber. Along the way, we learn about dreams, drugs, and why your Mom was right when she told you that everything will look better in the morning. If you’ve ever wondered what goes on behind closed eyes, I think “The Secret Life of Sleep” could be a dream for you. Purchase it here
For AZTB’s past Weekend Reads click here
Contributions from Terri Schlichenmeyer, the Bookworm
