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Outlander TV Review

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1410465192_0.pngThe Outlander novels, written by Diana Gabaldon, have transcended multiple generations and are generally recognized as one of the bestselling series of all time. With the first installment arriving in 1991, and subsequent novels appearing every few years after, it helps that the Outlander fan group has had decades to grow. Throughout the years, the novels have attracted many readers that enjoy romance, but have also found a place in the hearts of those who enjoy fantasy, sci-fi, historical fiction and even mystery novels. Gabaldon has made it abundantly clear that her works are genre-bending, and she’ll have words with anyone who tries to push her series into the romance section.

It’s no surprise then, that a book with such a vast audience would soon find itself invited to be transformed on television. Following the success of shows which provide romance, fantasy, and action all-in-one, Starz pinpointed Outlander as a potential hit. It appears they were correct, since the series premiere pulled in over 5 million views in the first week, and the success of the following episodes have since led Starz to already commit to a second season. The show, which is available only with a Starz subscription (local channel info here), has been the best performing series the network has produced yet.

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The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine by Michael Lewis

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The financial crash of 2008 surprised almost everybody–the investment banks, the government, and the Federal Reserve, not to mention millions of American homeowners. In The Big Short, Michael Lewis tells the story of a handful of investors who saw it coming, who read the tea leaves in the mortgage market, recognized that it was unsustainable, and decided to bet against the system. They earned hundreds of millions of dollars off one of the worst economic collapses in history.


Lewis dives into the underworld of mortgage backed securities (MBS), collateralized debt obligations (CDO), and credit default swaps (CDS), explaining them all in incredible detail. Despite the technical discussion, if you stick with it Lewis rewards you: he manages to weave a story so fascinating that it reads like a thriller novel. I devoured it in just a few days.

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Building a Life Out of Words by Shawn Smucker

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Often times when life throws us a curve ball, out natural tendency is to find some corner somewhere, cry in cup of coffee, and sing our favorite verse of poor, poor me. But what if we drew a deep breath, stepped back, and considered for a minute how we could use this opportunity to make a positive change of direction in our lives?

Shawn Smucker was faced with such a situation. After returning from four years of managing a large business in England, he felt lost working 10 hour days painting houses and living in his parent’s basement with his wife and two children. When his aunt called out of the blue and asked him to write her life story, he had no idea how his life would be impacted.

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Wealth and Poverty: A New Edition by George Gilder

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A full-throated moral, philosophical, and practical defense of capitalism. Rather than advocate with reluctance for capitalism, granting critics’ charges of its excesses and a supposed foundation of greed, Gilder shows that only a capitalist system will bring true prosperity and growth to all levels of a society.

Gilder argues that the most important element of capitalistic growth and success is the entrepreneur, the person who puts up capital in risky ventures in the hope of a payout. These risks fail more often than they succeed, but in all cases knowledge is learned–knowledge upon which new ventures build.

Simply scanning topics he covers and the conclusions he draws, one might think Gilder is just pitching conservative Republican ideology warmed over. But his arguments eschew partisanship in favor of a philosophical, principled, and utterly researched approach. Gilder’s breadth of knowledge and understanding of economics and sociology is stimulating to encounter; having read his more recent (and even more theoretical) Knowledge & Power, I can see he is truly a polymath.

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The Giver by Lois Lowry (Book and Movie Review)

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The Giver by Lois Lowry (1993) is a children’s book that is about a seemingly utopian society where “œsameness” is what provides the people with stability. As the story progresses, we learn that the sameness has created a lack of emotion to the point where even the people do not experience color. Jonas, the main character and young teenager, learns the truth about his community as he is chosen to be the receiver of memories, which have been eradicated in order for sameness to be achieved. The giver is an old man who gives him these memories and with them comes the truth and many other revelations.

The Giver is a book that is read by many middle school and high school students as a way, it seems, to get young students interested in reading while at the same time encouraging them to think deeply about the text and its meaning. The book is set apart from many of the other required reading because of how recently it has been published compared to most other books such as Shakespeare, Edgar Allen Poe, and Mark Twain, etc. And, many critics disagree that The Giver should be lauded to the extent that it is. Many adults reflect fondly on the book while other groan about the chore of having to read it so many years ago.

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The Financial Crisis and the Free Market Cure: Why Pure Capitalism Is the World Economy’s Only Hope by John Allison

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John Allison was the CEO of one of the only large banks that stayed profitable during the financial upheaval that came to a head in 2008. During his 20 year tenure at BB&T, during which he lead based on the principles of Ayn Rand, the bank grew exponentially in its success (from assets of $4.5 billion to $152 billion). During the crisis, the federal government in essence forced BB&T to take bailout money, even though they didn’t want it or need it, and they were literally the very first bank to pay back the money once it was legal to do so.

It’s fair to say that Allison had a front seat to the financial crisis, but from the perspective of a healthy bank. During all the crazed activity in Washington running up to TARP (Troubled Asset Relief Plan””the massive bailout of the financial industry), while the Federal Reserve was propping up banks, insurance and other finance companies and dictating the sale of others, Allison tried multiple times to consult with leadership at the Federal Reserve and the Treasury. But it was in vain–those making such monumental financial decisions weren’t interested in hearing from the healthy banks, just the dangerously overleveraged ones.

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Twelve Angry Men by Reginald Rose

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Twelve Angry Men by Reginald Rose is a play that recounts the deliberation of a jury in the murder trial. The jury is tasked to determine the future of an 18-year-old boy who is accused of killing his own father. At first, the case seems pretty obvious, but as the details of the case are discussed we discover that everything is not as open-and-shut as it seemed. The jury learns that biases and prior experiences play a role, unwittingly at times, in how facts are perceived and how events are interpreted. Tempers flare as the innocence and guilt of the defendant is discussed and a unanimous verdict must be found.

Reginald Rose originally wrote the story as a teleplay for a CBS show called Studio One in 1954. In 1957, it was turned into a film in which Henry Fonda produced and starred as the main protagonist. Other notable cast members are Lee J. Cobb as the main antagonist. Jack Klugman, who went on to star in The Odd Couple, was the sober jurist who grew up in a slum just like the defendant. Martin Balsalm, the foreman, played the unfortunate detective in Hitchcock’s Psycho. In doing research, I learned that while I didn’t recognize John Fielder, juror #2, in too many movies, his voice may seem familiar because he has voiced the character of Piglet for many years. Jack Warden, sports loving juror #7, played the sweet grandpa in the Sandra Bullock romantic comedy, While You Were Sleeping (I definitely loved that movie in middle school). Needless to say, the excellent cast helped to add depth to the rich script.

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Breakfast at Tiffany’s by Truman Capote (Book and Movie Review)

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Reposting this review from earlier this spring because the audiobook is on sale today only (Aug 13) for $1.95.
Breakfast at Tiffany's Book Review Breakfast at Tiffany’s is one of Truman Capote’s best well known works.  It is considered a novella as it is quite short with a listening length of just under three hours.  The short novel is about an enigma of a young girl, Holly Golightly, who is residing in New York making a living by hanging out with rich men.  This “œAmerican geisha” (Capote’s words) lives downstairs from this unnamed narrator whom she calls Fred because he reminds her of his brother.  Through the narrator’s interactions and conversation with Holly we slowly learn more and more about the contradictions in her life and what makes her a “œreal phony”.

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