Steven

Dana Priest has an important story to reveal here: Spending on the war on terror is out of control, there is duplication of services, no one is keeping track of this.

However this is poor literature. The book jumps around in what appears to be a random fashion. The book is loaded with buzzwords, initials of govn't services, almost impossible to keep up with. I still can't remember what a skiff is. Dana Priest's narration is terrible. She speaks in a monotone. Next time pay for a narrator, Dana you cheapskate.

The book which is based on some Washington Post articles appears to be a hurried attempt to monetize the articles. I guess Dana Priest's appearances on Washington Week don't pay all of her bills. Priest should have used The Great American Stickup as a guide on how to make disparate information interesting and accessible. It's a shame this book should have been much better

This is a well written, well researched book, about how many large corporations have rip-offed their workers retirement funds. The author Ellen Schultz is a former Wall St. Journal reporter, where some of this story is published. This lends credibility to her book, since WSJ has generally been a pro big business paper with an editorial staff that leans to the right.

The laws defining retirement funds can be complicated, no matter how good the writing. So the book took an extra effort on my part to pay close attention, and I had to listen to a few parts twice. But it was well worth the effort. However, this book will require more effort on the listener, than a less dense subject like a breezy novel. So if you're looking for an easy read, or a distraction this probably isn't it.

If you're a policy wonk like me you are probably aware that many well intentioned laws meant to protect workers and such are watered down by the federal and state bureaucracies that are supposed to administer them. - such is the case with retirement funds. This is the how and why of this book. I commend the author for making a difficult issue accessible and layering on a human touch. If you're concerned about this issue, this is the book to read.

The Big Thirst is a well Written and interesting treatise on the world wide water situation. There are some minor flaws in the writing. The book could have been shorter. The author spends some time redundantly haranguing that Americans and developed nations waste a good deal of water and that we don't have coherent policies in place to deal with water shortages and droughts. Yes, I get it. That's why I purchased this audio-book. So there's little need to repetitively convince me. Otherwise and interesting book about an important issue, seldom discussed.

The book is a fairly non-partisan look at what is already working and what should be done to lower costs and provide better outcomes. The info is easy to understand and flows in an interesting manner. It;s obvious that Joe Flower is an expert in the field after studying and writing about healthcare for many years.

The author has an optimistic view that U.S healthcare consumers can and will get better outcomes and pay less in the future. Yes, but how long will it take, and how much suffering will transpire before that? Even the relatively benign Obamacare is decried as socialized medicine by the right.

This is a Great Look at how Scientific Progress has Made the World a Better Place in the past and will do so in the future.

The authors have a real grasp of the science of the 21st Century and provide and interesting narrative for science and non-science aficionados alike.

I'm not sure the immediate future will be as rosy as the author's think, but they provide a compelling case that over the long run science raises living standards for everyone.

If you've ever wondered how Fox became a podium for the right wing in the U.S. then this is the book that explains it. This a well researched, interesting book that examines the history of Roger Ailes, and how and why he crossed the line from journalism, to right wing Republican advocacy.

Michael Grabell has written a well researched book on the stimulus. The writing is good, refreshingly entertaining in portions, as opposed to some other topical economic oriented books.

The book seems well balanced as to whether it was money well spent, some wasted/ most well intentioned/ some well spent.

Don't pay attention to some negative reviews left on amazon
(white whinners) left by tea party types.

As a reporter for the Economist - (I'm a subscriber) Michael Reid presents good info on Latin America with a slant on economics. I have no problem with his view point that Hugo Chavez is a corrupt populist in the tradition of preceding generations of flawed head's of state.

The problem with the book is disorganization. He skips around from country to country when discussing various topics, with the end result of the listener having a problem retaining the info. The topics are often blurred in a hodge podge of issues. Had the book been organized by country it would have been easier to follow.

In addition to providing the details of the origin of the debt crisis in Greece, Ireland, and California, Lewis provides an interesting and colorful account. That's in comparison to most business writers, who aren't very good writers. Yes, sometimes Lewis is over the top, like in his theory that Germans are obsessed with anal scatology, but that adds to the material that would otherwise be a very dry read.

I've read 3 or 4 books on the financial crisis, but this one was the best. Scheer doesn't get bogged down in the financial minutiae that some of the other authors with less writing experience do. Instead he spins and interesting, down to earth, compelling story. The fact that Scheer isn't afraid to express his contempt for the morons that brought the U.S the worse financial crisis since the Great Depression, adds to the story.