The Grand Canyon by Robert Wallace
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book has been in our home library since we subscribed to the Time-Life series, The American Wilderness. This one is underlined and starred for information we used for previous visits to the Grand Canyon, both North and South Rims.
This time I noticed more of Wallace's writing craft when he uses such phrases as "...the proximity of parked cars and postcards at Bright Angel Lodge." Excerpts of writings by John Wesley Powell are in the section named Exploring the "Fretful River".This armchair traveler ejoyed the chapters named "The Challenge of White Water" and "Riding the Rapids."
I recommend this book to all readers.

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The Southern Appalachians by Jerome Doolittle
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This has been in my home library since we had a subscription to the Time-Life American Wilderness Series. I enjoyed the photos many times when I knew we would be driving through the area. This is the first time I consistently read all five chapters, and I enjoyed the text as much as I enjoyed the pictures for Doolittle evoked memories of hikes I previously made and spurred my imagination to want some new hikes.
I recommend this to all readers who enjoy armchair-travels and natural history.

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Why Good People Can't Get Jobs: The Skills Gap and What Companies Can Do About It by Peter Cappelli
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book was free from Barnes and Noble when I downloaded it to my Nook library. I wanted suggestions to help the good people I know who are frustrated about not being able to find jobs or better jobs, There were some suggestions for employers, such as, provide more training or apprenticeships; be willing to grant more interviews of nearly qualified people; and be careful with the qualifications you use for criterion in the hiring software. There seemed to be fewer suggestions for job-seekers. One suggestions is not to quit a job before you find the next one because the gap on your resume looks bad to the hiring software.
I learned about "Home Depot Syndrome," the tendency to think of workers as replaceable parts that plug into the business machine, and "searching for the unicorn," when managers pile all the credentials and expertise into the job description to minimize the risk that the candidate will fail, making it virtually impossible to find anyone who fits.
I recommend the book to business managers so they may take a second look at what they need in an applicant. I think this book would only frustrate job-seekers.

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 Death by China: Confronting the Dragon - A Global Call to Action by Peter Navarro
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This ebook was free from Barnes and Noble when I downloaded it to my Nook library.
This book does a good job of stating threats and concerns I wish to make more people concerned about. The most important concern is Chinese Communist culture is a totalitarian, non-religious society very different from our culture, and we are naive if you trust them to behave as we wish them to behave. People have died or been injured by Chinese exports, and are unable to seek legal recourse. Chinese manufactures pollute, and are not held to the same standards as US or European manufacturers. Chinese control raw materials for which others must pay a premium. This book also includes materials about their military and their spying.
I recommend this book to all readers.


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Loving Eliza by Ruth Ann Nordin
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is the third book of Ruth Ann Nordin which I downloaded to my Nook library when it was free. I liked the story of Eliza and John so much I read it in a day. I only give it three stars because I can't recommend it to some family members because some scenes are worth an R rating.
Read this only if you are willing to overlook anachronisms in a novel that claims to be set in a definite time and place, such as June 1883, southern Dakota territory.


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A Husband for Margaret by Ruth Ann Nordin
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This was a sequel to A Bride for Tom which I downloaded to my Nook library when it was free.
Like some other reviewers on Goodreads, I was disappointed when the wedding night scene went R, or at least TV-MA, when the first book did not. This make is difficult for me to recommend to other family members.
I was also disappointed how manipulative Margaret was with Debra, even if things worked out.

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Crucial Accountability: Tools for Resolving Violated Expectations, Broken Commitments, and Bad Behavior by Kerry Patterson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Why is it the people who need to stop doing behaviors that create a need for books like this, don't read them; and it is up to the rest of us to read about topics such as "Signs you are Dealing With the Wrong Problem"? Three of those signs are 1. Your solution does not get what you really want. 2. You're constantly discussing the same issue. and 3. you're getting increasingly upset.
I like chapter 9, "The 12 Yeah-Buts"
I recommend this book for ALL people.

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A Bride for Tom by Ruth Ann Nordin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A Bride for Tom is the first of three books by Ruth Ann Nordin I have in my Nook library which I downloaded for free from Barnes and Noble. These are romances set in the historical time of 1868 Omaha, Nebraska. Don't expect historical facts or much description in this 88-page book.
The story is entertaining.
I recommend it to readers who enjoy this genre.

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Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Gone Girl was a free selection from Nook's audiobook app.
Without a daily commute to work, audiobooks are more difficult for me to make the time to listen, and at 19+ hours, completing this book took more than 2 months.
This book kept me entertained by the carefully-crafted surprise twists; but, I'm appalled by the characters.
I recommend this book only to readers who want their popular, suspense novels to be a bit different than others in the genre.

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Downtown Green: Gone to Green Series - Book 5 by Judy Christie
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Downtown Green was free when I downloaded it to my Nook library in 2013. This is the fifth book in the series. I did not read books 3 and 4, and there was just enough backstory in this book for me to understand what happened in those books.
I only gave this book 3 stars because I no longer have enough enthusiasm about this series to recommend it other readers. I found myself disagreeing with the solutions Lois gave to the community. Her imagined nostalgia for what she hopes will be the childhood her son will have leads to the impulsive decision to buy the Harbor Freeze. As far as I can tell, this provides paid employment for two people by the end of the book. This blocks a light industrial complex which might provide more employment, and yet only her most antagonistic opponents have anything to say about it.
If you enjoyed the series so far, read it.


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Europe's Financial Crisis: A Short Guide to How the Euro Fell Into Crisis and the Consequences for the World by John Authers
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book was free when I downloaded it to my Nook library from Barnes and Noble.
This book is easy to read and understand, and it may over-simplify complicated relations as it explains one aspect and does not show all possible consequences. There is a summary at the end of each chapter.
It can be an introductory text to the way a problem was and why it persists.

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