Swap Draining Made Easy!

Donald Drains the Swamp - Eric Metaxas and Tim Raglin (Regnery Publishing)

It is a singular concept so simple, so basic to the very foundation that our country was built upon, that even a liberal should be able to understand it. Sadly they probably won't, because they will play party politics ahead of country.

In his new (children's?) book, Eric Metaxas and cartoonist Tim Raglin give  us their take on the roots of the Presidency of Donald J. Trump with, Donald Drains the Swamp, by using a parable that takes us back to the roots of our country and the immortal words of President Abraham Lincoln that ours, is a "government of the people, by the people and for the people."

Metaxas sets the story against the backdrop of a group of cavemen and their King, who goes off to live in an actual swamp and while he leads, he ignores the cave-people that he rules and does his own thing, his own way. The story continues that the people he rules, rise up and bring forth a new leader to speak to the King and try to get him to understand the needs of the people.

This new intermediary is a cave builder, named Donald who builds caves envied by everyone in the land. when Donald gets gets frustrated about being ignored, he sets about digging a "huge" trench to drain the swamp. Donald he goes as far as to assure that the trench will "even come in below budget." It's a this point the people join him and help dig the trench, speeding the process of draining the swamp and in the process getting the attention of the aloof King.

This will be a fun book for your kids, but it may make the perfect gift for your annoying liberal friend who just can't quite get over the fact that Hilary Clinton lost. Bringing them to their knees and howling at the sky by slipping them a gift wrapped copy is my definition of FUN! 

Don't Miss Fiction

Alright, I admit it, every once in a while I get a little behind in my reading, so I have to play catch up and so I can pass along tips on what I dub can't miss fiction. This batch of four great books certainly lives up to that mantle.

Second Strike - Peter Kirsanow (Dutton) 

Second Strike is the follow up to Peter Kirsanow's debut Target Omega which introduced hero Mike Garin to the world of thriller fiction. To say that Garin is a breast could be the definition of a beast; a hardened and well honed one man wrecking crew. Fresh off the effort to thwart a terrorist attack in the form of an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) attack that paired Russian and Iranian evil doers, Garin tops the list of those targeted by terrorists for reprisal, placing him square in the gun sights of Russian killer Taras Bor.

Kirsanow, who has held high level federal positions, writes with a inherent insider feel that ratchets up the thrills. Garin is aided and abetted by a couple of highly trained and tough operators, Congo Knox and sniper Dan Dwyer in taking the fight to the to the  terrorists. These are the kinds of folks that will directly appeal to fans of the late Vince Flynn's, Mitch Rapp and Brad Thor's, Scot Harvath. Add to the mix the assets of a Blackwater-like military contractor and a high level national security advisor and the  book crackles with with energy. 

Nomad - James Swallow - (Forge Books) 


Countless authors and film makers have tapped into the storyline involving poor aggrieved Middle Eastern types seeking revenge against the evil west. Now add to the mix the equally familiar mole/spy in the security service and you're getting close to  the plot line of what is described as the first in the Mark Dane Series, Nomad. Dane is an interesting combination of veteran, skilled, military operator combined with a full Monty of high tech skills that has him taking a technical support role with the the MI-6 Nomad special operations team.

When an operation goes south leaving the entire Nomad team goes south, save for Dane, fingers and suspicions aimed directly at him, have him on the run trying to not only survive but to figure out who the mole inside MI-6 is. The race is on and the story moves with a solid, steady velocity once the initial ground work is laid. Swallow is a skilled British scriptwriter and this character debut slots him in as a thriller writer to reckon with. 

Add to the mix the mysterious Rubicon Group and tough as nails "security" operator Lucy Keyes, who ride to the rescue to save and aide Dane and this one sets the table for a long, happy, exciting relationship.

The Fifth to Die: A 4MK Thriller - J. D. Barker - (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) -

The mind of author J D Barker, is a dark and scary place. Back in 2017 Barker was responsible for what became one of my favorite books of the year, The Fourth Monkey. As a follow up, The Fifth To Die, Barker teases out enough bits a pieces of the one who got away, the 4MK killer to thread throughout the hunt for a new, equally devious and deranged killer.

Barker brings a level of skill at adding twist after twist to the story that you will find yourself second-guessing everything you think you have figured out. Barker skillfully engineers and hones each bit of the story line to fit perfectly together. It's easy to see why the Bram Stoker family selected Barker to pen a prequel to Dracula; this guy is that dark. If you are a veteran thriller reader who revels in the chase, trying to figure out how things come to a conclusion, then this one is right up your alley and will keep your guessing.

The Vinyl Detective: Victory Disc - Andrew Cartmel - (Titan Books) -

I love Andrew Cartmel's, Vinyl Detective Series because it appeals to everything I love to do; reading great mysteries and collecting music! This time out, the self-described Vinyl Detective and his band of lovable characters are on the hunt once again, trying to track down a World War II era Victory Disc, by the British, Flare Path Orchestra, the equivalent of the military Glenn Miller Orchestra.

Naturally there is a mysterious benefactor who hires on the VD and friends to track down these rare records and soon the hunt is on and the aging musicians from the  from the band, a prime source for tracking down the discs, start dropping like flies. Twists, turns and plenty of colorful and in some cases disturbing characters dot the landscape throughout. If you thought that WWII was over, think again, some battles are still in progress and who knew vinyl would be at the root of the fight. If you like your mysteries with a healthy dose of fun, this one is  for you.


    

Life In Pieces

Ernest Hemingway: Artifacts from a Life - Michael Katakis (Scribner)

I have always loved books like, Ernest Hemingway: Artifacts from a Life, the ones that tell a story not just of written words, but by weaving together photographs, letters and telegrams, notes and snippets collected over the course of a lifetime. 

I have always believed there is a thin line between a collector and a hoarder. A collector can truly live in a world of the marvelous and magical, while a hoarder lives in a world of sickness and decay. Thank God that someone had the foresight to gather this ephemera, which could have easily been discarded along the way of Hemingway's rambling, roaming life; and put together this magical collection in a way that offers new insight into the writer/adventurers life.

Given the current state of thinking on the keeping of journals among the writer community, I was struck by the fact the Hemingway did not keep a journal or diary;  he seemed like the perfect candidate for the practice. That being said, it raises the value  of the work done curating this collection by Michael Katakis, the manager of  the Hemingway estate. Katakis does a wonderful job of utilizing two way communications to detail the story in these pages; letters, notes and  telegrams to and from Hemingway, often dashed off on whatever was handy when he jotted of a note. A formal telegram from President-elect Kennedy invited Hemingway to inauguration events, coupled with the scrawled, back of steno notebook page reply of regrets due to health issues.

This book also made me a bit sad for future generations; like many I don't have a large collection of photographs, letters or cards to gather memories. To put together a collection of this type in the future we may need to package copies of SD cards, jump drives and outdated smartphones, complete with cracked screens to tell our story. We live in such a mobile, disposable society that we will lose so much of our personal history in the futile search for the next meme or viral video. Then again it got me to ponder the endless stacks of journals and notebooks in which I have scrawled millions of words on every topic imaginable and what my family would make of them as they thumbed through the pages. 

For now I will have  to be content with this amazing collection and the insights it gives this Hemingway fan, into the storied history and ramblings, both real life and on paper.

A Smooth and Easy Miss

The Man Who Came Uptown - George Pelecanos - (Mullholland)

There is something smooth and easy about the lived in feel of a George Pelecanos book - no matter if it's the first time you're taking a ride with him or if you've been down this road before.

The latest outing from the Emmy nominated writer and producer; The Wire and HBO's The Deuce - and bestselling author - The Man Who Came Uptown - melds a handful of characters diverse life tales and the intersections and crossing of paths. Pelecanos is a master of an easy style of describing the settings that he places his equally comfortable characters in. Once again he treads on familiar ground dropping his folks into the neighborhoods in and around Washington DC.

As he has done in past outings, Pelecanos delivers a depth to even the bit players in every scene, that will have you wondering if there is more than meets the eye to their given piece of the story. Unfortunately here, Pelecanos' writing skills outweigh the story.

The Man Who Came Uptown, has all of the makings of something great; a heady brew of the once gritty streets of DC moving through gentrification, mixed with a crime story set against the back drop of redemption, revenge and unrequited love. At times it comes off as a series of short individual stories that Pelecanos tried to weave together to form a full length novel. The ending falls short, seeming like something that was tacked on in an effort  to pull everything together.

The Humble Rock God

Heavy Duty: Days and Nights in Judas Priest -K. K. Downing - (DaCapo Press)

As I worked my way through Heavy Duty: Days and Nights in Judas Priest the bio from guitarist/founder K. K. Downing, I couldn’t help but be struck by the dichotomy of this leather and spikes clad, sneering, blonde rocker, with his guitar slung low. On one hand he is all that larger than life rock God and on the other a seemingly mild-mannered, humble guy who can’t hide the broad grin, spurred by his good fortune of being a rock star.

Naturally Downing ticks all of the boxes you’d expect; touching on his childhood, the genesis of his music aspiration, the start of the band, the slog of the early days, onto bigger and better things and of course the women. Downing also serves up something interesting insights into his creative process of not only writing the songs, building out the production, but also his often internal struggle with trying to build a coherent overall vision for the band’s look and feel, including everything from what they did onstage, on video, album covers and look. As the story progresses, you can see he never quite reached his level of comfort.

My coming of age in rock radio, paralleled Downing’s rise to rock stardom, so many of the episodes he writes about served as a great reminder of milestone moments for Judas Priest. He details the tale of the band being dragged into court, their music blamed as the cause of the suicide death of one fan and the failed attempt of another. He describes the pain he felt at the conflict of having to defend the band contrasted by the tragedy of the actions of what were clearly hardcore fans of the band’s music. I couldn’t help but remember the image of lead vocalist, Rob Halford uncharacteristically dressed in a suit, testifying in court.

When it comes to Halford coming out of the closet as gay, Downing is strikingly frank; claiming that he and fellow bandmates had always suspected Halford’ predilections and didn’t really care. It was almost as if Halford’s standard stage gear of leathers and a bullwhip was a caricature of his reality; an inside joke that everyone was in on.

Diehard Priest fans may quibble over some of the internal disagreements that Downing details, flying in the face of the united rock front the band presented to the public. Let’s face it, when you put a bunch of guys in close proximity and nearly non-stop recording and touring for decades and conflict is only natural and the details only make this more realistic. In the end it is Downing’s firm grip on reality that makes Heavy Duty an entertaining read.

The Obscure World In the Palm of Your Hand

The Atlas Obscurra Explorer’s Guide for the World’s Most Adventurous Kid – Dylan Thuras and Rosemary Mosco (Workman Publishing)

Atlas Obscurra: An Explorer’s Guide to the World’s Hidden Wonders – Joshua Foer, Dylan Thuras, and Ella Morton (Workman Publishing)

A year or so ago I was doing some research for a book, and when it came to the book’s setting/geography, I realized I was lacking the basic knowledge I needed to properly tell the story. So, I did what has become natural and I turned to Google. The results I received to my queries did not to erase my information deficit, so I decide to go old school and round up an atlas from a local used book store.

There is just something about opening the heavy book and over-sized pages of an atlas that can transport you to the locale you are researching. One of my first thoughts was how kids raised in the era of the internet would never learn this handy research skill of delving into the colorful pages and dense type of a good atlas. Shortly after I started thumbing through the atlas, I came across Atlas Obscurra: An Explorer’s Guide to the World’s Hidden Wonders, by Joshua Foer, Dylan Thuras, and Ella Morton, in a book store, completely oblivious to the website that launched this phenomenon.

Packed with tales, photos and maps on 700 strange and curious locales and things that populate the world out there, Atlas Obscurra, is a treasure trove of out-there stuff. To me, this fascinating blend of the bizarre is just the thing to capture the imagination of even the most jaded of web surfers. Instead of simply doling out pictures and information Atlas Obscurra, fuels the imagination and fires a long-dormant sense of adventure.

Now the perfect companion to the original, comes in the form of The Atlas Obscurra Explorer’s Guide for the World’s Most Adventurous Kid. Once again Dylan Thuras helms the project, teamed with Rosemary Mosco. This brightly illustrated (by Joy Ang) collection is a perfect keeper to fire the interest of any explorer, young and old alike.

The Atlas Obscurra Explorer’s Guide for the World’s Most Adventurous Kid, circles the globe, touching on every continent and expounding on the virtues of caves and the creepy crawlies that in habit them, bodies of water and land masses of every shape and size. This is the perfect appetizer to feed the imagination of the would-be explorer. I love the fact that Thuras and Mosco include a packing list for the well-prepared adventurer and don’t forget to pack a sack of goat treats, “just in case you run into some adorable, hungry goats…” Hey, you never know.

Maybe I’m getting old or showcasing my old school tendencies, but think these books are just what we are missing out on in today’s all too fast paced world; rather than being spoon fed someone else’s answers we are served up something to stoke our imagination, fire our curiosity and our own search for the answers.

Three Quarterbacks, One Path

Believe It – My Journey of Success, Failure and Overcoming the Odds – Nick Foles (Tyndale Press)

Playing For More – Trust Beyond What You See – Case Keenum – (B&H Books)

This is the Day – Reclaim Your Dream, Ignite Your Passion, Live Your Purpose – Tim Tebow – (Waterbrook Press)

It is a sad statement about the current state of the world we live in that there is a question or stigma attached to the role of faith, Christianity in particular, by folks who can’t seem to come to grips with people who live with a higher purpose.

When it comes to high profile, often high maintenance professional athletes, that stigma gets magnified by, more often than not, liberal leaning sports broadcasters who have shifted focus from sports to social issues. These clowns thump their chests and proclaim that sports in and of themselves are embedded in the social fabric of society, while discounting or maligning Christian athletes and the role of religion in enacting positive change in the world.

Three new books, by three professional football quarterbacks spell out the positive impact that their faith had on their life and careers. In the case of the books by Nick Foles, Believe It – My Journey of Success, Failure and Overcoming the Odds and Case Keenum, Playing For More – Trust Beyond What You See mark a great intersection of biography and inspiration.

Tim Tebow has covered his story in other bestselling books and turns to not only delivering inspiration and encouragement, but also illustrating the concepts he espouses, with real world examples of how faith and purpose can change your life in This is the Day – Reclaim Your Dream, Ignite Your Passion, Live Your Purpose. While Tebow clearly leans heavily on his faith, I really think this is a truly inspiring, motivational book that your kids or anyone you think could use a boost or nudge in the right direction will benefit from.

I have driven my family to the brink of their sanity many times by proclaiming “you get out what you put in” and I CLEARLY get that message in the pages of Tebow’s book. He understands the value of hard work and effort and of striving every day to be the best. He uses phrases like “going back to the well,” and “playing through the pain,” to offer motivation to strive for more. I loved his thoughts on instant gratification and empty celebrity/fame for no reason, that has become part of or daily lives.

Tebow does a great job of showing examples of how faith and living with a purpose can make dramatic improvements in our lives. He also levels the playing field with great stories; just when you think your life so hard, he shows you that there are folks whose mountainous struggles make yours seem miniscule in comparison. If you can’t be inspired by This is the Day, then you may want to check your pulse or your humanity.

In Believe It, Foles details his amazing journey from college star to struggling NFL backup to pondering moving on with his life outside football to a one more chance story of leading the Philadelphia Eagles to a super Bowl victory and winning the MVP of the big game. The one constant throughout this life journey was Foles faith that his path was guided by a higher power.

If you’re looking for a football story or collectible to add to your shelf, you’ll certainly get that here, but the bigger message is the hang tough, keep strong and God will present you with the opportunity; from there it is up to you what you do with it. Foles stick to it attitude was clearly forged in the fires of hard work, faith and stepping up when he got the call.

In the case of Case Keenum’s, Playing For More, this is truly a rags to riches tale. Keenum, a working man’s quarterback, recruited by only one college, Houston, he went onto cost the NCAA a ton of money to by ink to rewrite the record books, only to go undrafted by an NFL team. His free agent career saw him cut by three teams over the course of time and in the end he became a journeyman backup.

All the while his family and his faith kept him focused and much like Foles, opportunity presented itself and Keenum answered the call, leading the Minnesota Vikings to an NFC North title. He has since gone on to sign a massive contract with the Denver Broncos, the ultimate payoff for his hard work.

Just imagine if Keenum or Foles had not had their faith to lean on, to keep them focused and centered, what opportunity may have been squandered? These are heroic and inspirational stories, not about quarterbacks or professional athletes, but about three men who understand that someone else is calling the plays for them and how they can claim victory in His honor.

Arm Yourself

Duped: How the Anti-Gun Lobby Exploits the Parkland School Shooting – and How Gun Owners Can Fight Back – Mark W. Smith (Bombardier Books)

I have mentioned here before that I am a recovering radio talk show host. While my thirst for debate has slackened, it never really goes away. I am (still) always on the lookout for concise, direct and powerful tools that will help me win the war of words.

Mark W. Smith’s latest book Duped: How the Anti-Gun Lobby Exploits the Parkland School Shooting – and How Gun Owners Can Fight Back, certainly lives up to and exceeds those three descriptors. A practicing trial lawyer and vice president of the New York Federalist Society, Smith clearly has the necessary legal chops to lay out the case; taking the often hyperbolic anti-gunner claims and then methodically shredding them step by step, point by point.

Smith makes the case that the anti-gun drivel spewed by looney left has brainwashed the unfortunate victims/survivors of the Parkland, Florida high school shooting and turned them into useful idiots to further their agenda. He skillfully utilizes relatable stories to knock down anti-gun arguments from the likes of hypocritical liberal nitwits like Rosie O’Donnell and Alyssa Milano, who appeared at an anti-gun rally trailed by security guards armed to the teeth.

Then there is the do as I say not as I do ridiculousness of Facebook’s founder Mark Zuckerberg, who wants to take away your guns, while spending $20,000 per day on armed personal security for himself and his family. What? You don’t have an extra $3.7 million per year laying around to protect your family 24/7?

I still remember when the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, named after President Reagan’s aide James Brady who was caught in the crossfire during the 1981 assassination attempt on the President, which I think was still called Hand Gun Control Inc at the time; brought their brainwashing road show to a local university. I had requested the opportunity to debate their rep and he flat out refused, telling the college’s PR flak that he would not debate, because they knew I was too well prepared.

My gun control debate has been boiled down to two simple questions:

    

     1. Anti-gun type love to claim (wrongly) that private gun ownership does nothing to prevent or reduce crime or make you safer. My first question is, would they be willing to place a small sign on their front door that proclaims, “No Guns on Premises”. These are similar to the gun free zone signs that are on the doors of most U. S. schools that make those inside the schools prime sitting targets.

     

     2. What specifically does an “effective” and “common sense” gun control bill look like, that will prevent school or other mass shootings? It’s likely you will get the standard load of hooey that includes something about “closing the gun show loophole” and “banning assault weapons and high capacity magazines.” None of these will do the first thing toward preventing a mass shooting

This is why arming yourself and arming yourself with the knowledge Smith imparts are the best way to protect your family and your right to choose.