Guest Review: Inferno by Dan Brown

   4 out of 5 stars

To add a new perspective here on This World is an Idiot Mill, we're inviting a guest reviewer. Young enough to enjoy carbohydrate intensive food but old enough to know better, JTP will offer his unique and sometimes acerbic outlook on books he reads. Here's his first review for Dan Brown's best-seller, Inferno:

Effectively proving he's a force to be reckoned with, Dan Brown has once again assaulted the best-seller list with his new book Inferno, named after Dante Alighieri's 14th-century epic poem of the same name. Stalwart art historian Professor Robert Langdon must tap into his expertise to decipher a message hidden in a doctored Italian masterpiece. But, far be it for me to merely relate line by line who said what, who did that or where it happened. Rather, my 10,000 foot view of the book will instead reveal that Langdon takes us on a guided tour through Italy, providing insight into works by various masters, filtering through seemingly obvious answers to find the strand of truth, all the while battling the after-effects of a drug administered to him to obliterate his short term memory.

An interesting device used by author Brown is to reacquaint us to dialog or plot events when the climax to a long simmering situation finally unfolds. This re-telling of a prior event leaves no doubt in one's mind as to the sequence of events and how they logically developed. You'll understand what I mean if you've ever reached a turning point in a novel and said to yourself, "now, where was that mentioned previously," or "who said that to him/her?" Granted, this could be bothersome or perhaps even offensive in less able hands but I felt quite comfortable with Brown's restatement of prior events.

Ah...but if you're read any of my prior reviews, you know my efforts wouldn't be complete unless I pointed out something or things that stuck in my craw. (Incidentally, I fully intend on asking my doctor where the craw can be found in or on a human body.) And I found three significant gaffs as our story traverses from historic Italy and eventually to a massive basilica in Turkey. Mr. Brown employs the expression Pandora's box when referencing to something being set loose. BUT, he misuses the idiom by stating "Pandora was released from her box." Huh? How could an author so well versed in pieces of art, historic buildings and streets, byways and alleys of ancient cities goof on something that could be referenced via a Google search?

A second miscue (IMHO) was the time he confronts an individual he feels is responsible for an event that could have catastrophic results world wide if not immediately mitigated. With an ante of that magnitude, an appropriate emotional response would be anxiety, discomfort and an uncontrollable urgency to shake the individual to provide answers to solve the impending crisis? Instead, Langdon is calm and modulated, seemingly with an immeasurable amount of time to solve his dilemma. I suppose it was much more important to maintain deportment and demeanor rather than submit to blind fear because the world as we know it could be changed forever.

The third and most egregious error is when Langdon is with a physician who decides to open a device they've found sewn into his clothing. This cylindrical object has the universally known biohazard emblem prominently displayed on its surface but neither of the two professionals has any compunction about opening to see what's inside. Let me put it to you this way: if you found a box with that symbol on it would YOU open it? I mean, it could very well be Pandora's box!

However, don't let the comments I wrote above deter you from reading Inferno. This enjoyable book will whisk you around Italy, introduce you to painters Giorgio Vasari and Botticelli, the Palazzo Vechhio & other tourist attractions, the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul as well as secret passages and other intriguing twists and turn that will keep you entertained. Hey, I'm not a published author but if I could write even half as well as Dan Brown I'd consider myself a smashing success. (N.B: Inferno is #3 on the NY Times best seller list for the week of 7/28/13; it was #1 the prior week.)

One Doctor is All We Need

One Doctor: Close Calls, Cold Cases And The Mystery Of Medicine by Brendan Reilly

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This book reads like part House, part Grey’s Anatomy and part diary, yet much, much more informative. By bringing us into his every day life and meeting his various patients at New York Presbyterian Hospital’s emergency department, Dr. Brendan Reilly explains, by example, why US healthcare, or more precise, ER care, has evolved into the complicated, hard-to-navigate maze that we see today; why most young med school graduates decide to to become specialists instead of primary physicians, which our country desperately needs.

The title, One Doctor, was used. Due to the regulation and involvement of the health insurance industry, most of us do not have a doctor who deeply concerns about us, who knows us well, who rallies for the right care in our behalf. On the other hand, we all have a battery of specialists. We have a cardiologist for our heart, a rheumatogist for our arthritis, an urologist for our prostates...and so on. Specialists make much more money, and where we are referred to once our ailment is out of our primary care’s scope. But, they usually do not know our complete health history since they only focus on a specific part of us. Dr. Reilly claimed that the patient with the one doctor that truly care for him, follows him over time and know him well would win this rat race of so-called American healthcare. It’s the difference between life and death sometimes…or worse, between death and insufferable life.

Sometimes when a patient or family says, “Do everything for me, doctor,” it unnecessarily that they want to try everything possible to live. Sometimes they do not want to hurt the family members who can’t let go, or they’re scared, or they have no idea hanging on could be worse than death. It’s the doctor, a good doctor’s job to find out what these patients really want, since some scenarios can be really worse than death. We all have a different trade-off limit between how much we are willing to suffer to prolong our life, it’s also a responsible doctor’s job to find out. From the various cases we encounter along with Dr. Reilly, we acquire a better understanding of the end of life, terminal illness, palliative care (which is not used enough), the quality of life, letting go, who to assign as surrogate and all other choices we might face in the future which we most likely never prepared ourselves for. We also will learn about the not perfect, but needed advanced directives as well.

As Dr. Reilly stated, “Most of the sad stories happen when this process doesn’t start until it’s too late. That’s how all those folks wind up comatose in nursing home and intensive care units, fogged with drugs and flogged by machines, not a prayer of getting better. It’s a living hell—and the only hyperbole in that phrase is the ‘living’ part.”

Dr. Reilly is a brilliant storyteller and great writer, and also a rare doctor that deeply cares for his patients. I can feel his real concern and love for life and the world. I could also feel the empathy he has for his patients and their families by reading the way he put his thoughts on paper. Several of these stories were deeply moving: Mr. Gunther, who endured a progressive form of cancer earlier in life who now faces another one; Mr. Atkins with a rapidly progressive terminal illness, who does not have time to prepare his family for his death; Ms. Rhodik, who refused to speak, but her family’s decisions are endangering her health. Others were down right disturbing: Fred, who decided that “losing his marbles” was never an option…and many more. We also learn about the cost of a misdiagnosis, as well as the cost of doing too much.

This is a deeply moving book with many though-provoking stories, and lots of useful information from a good and genuinely caring doctor who has over 40 years of experience. Read this book, for your elders, for yourself, for your children…and for the hope of a better health care system in the near future. This book will make you a better patient, advocate, caretaker, healthcare consumer and....human.

Advance reading copy provided by the Publisher via Netgalley

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Don't believe everything your read blindly... Use your numbersense!

Numbersense: How to Use Big Data to Your Advantage by Kaiser Fung

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


“The key is not how much data is analyzed, but how.”

Data is manipulatable. The same set of data can be analyzed to give the exact polar results. With the accessibility of the Internet, we are living in a world of lots of data. “Big Data” is the word the author used. It’s a vast number of data that’s beyond the scope of any normal data analysis program can handle or manage. Lots of data are obtainable, with lots of analyses of these data available, since every single one of the market players are studying these data to gain an edge in competition.

The author used the Gates Foundation’s example to let us know that even big organizations with lots of money and analysts can still make a stupid decision with the wrong data or analysis. Ten years ago, the Foundation made a mistake assuming that smaller school s are better for student achievement, which is later proven untrue. He argued that Big Data moves us backwards, since more data results in more time spend analyzing, arguing, validating and replicating results. More of the any above activities will cause more doubt and confusion. Therefore, It’s urgent to learn a way to analyze them so you can just keep your head clear, and not being lied to.

“Any kind of subjective ranking does not need to be correct, it just has to be believed”

What do we believe, and what technique do we use to help us make the decision? Data analysis is an art, and not every statistician knows what he’s talking about. A person with good “numbersense” will be way above the others in avoiding the pitfall. A person with a good numbersense will spot bad data or bad analyses, or know when to stop when collecting his own. Unfortunately, numbersense can’t be taught in a regular classroom, a program or a textbook. It’s only learned from another person or real life practices. After more than 20 years in management in a hospital, I know these people do exist, but rarely. They are wonderful problem solvers. Lucky for rest of us, this book is a great place to start learning about numbersense. The author has a way of explaining complex subjects in a simple and understandable way, and his flow of thoughts is logical and very easy to follow. While analyzing data, the author also explained statistical terms thoroughly, as the term significant does not necessarily means important.

The author used real life news examples where someone made a claim about something and then backed it up with data, and he analyzes them, explaining the process to us along the way. The examples include: Law schools admission data, Groupon’s business model, diets and BMI, unemployment and jobs, our inability to remember prices and CPI, and even fantasy football. These examples were very interesting to read as the author gives step-by-step instructions of how these data we see everyday could easily be manipulated to fool us. My daughter is in the process of applying for college, and I can assure you, after reading the first chapter, I will never look at college rankings the same way.

I think every person in marketing, business, sociology, management or data analysis should read this book, as well as any consumer who wants to make sense of this so called “Big Data.” Numbersense is a great word for people who have the talent of analyzing data and spotting errors or intended manipulation. This book reads very much like Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything by Stephen Levitt, but is a bit more technical and might take a little understanding of statistics and/or business to fully appreciate the book. My background is business administration and healthcare, and I had a fun ride.

*Thanks to Netgalley and McGraw Hill in providing the advanced reading copy.



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A Mother's Day reading: What My Mother Gave Me, edited by Elizabeth Benedict

What My Mother Gave Me: Thirty-one Women on the Gifts That Mattered Most by Elizabeth Benedict

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This book came just in time for Mother’s Day 2013. It’s a collection of short stories/essays written by 31 different female authors. Some of them are well known, others, not as much. The theme? They wrote about the one thing that their Mom had given them with the most meaning or long-lasting impression.

As a reader, I truly believe that investing a little time to understand the background, education, life experiences, and childhood of an author would greatly improve my reading experience. When I saw the names of several authors I know, I thought this book would be a great supplement for my books. I also predicted that this would be an inspirational and uplifting easy read. After all, who else could influence us as much, or as positively as our Mother does?

I was quite wrong.

It was a shock to discover that not all stories were positive or easy to read. Some authors downright hate their Moms, or lack mothering there of. The “gift” their talked about were not all tangible as well, although most were. They varied from tangible: a nail polish, a photograph, a part of their home, an outfit; to intangible ones: memories, pain, love of words, a day’s experience. The essays also varied from pleasant to down right painful to read, from eloquent to mediocre. Some realized their Mothers loved them right there and then, others, years later. The essays definitely covered all sort of Mothers and daughters, some good, some not so good….just like in real life. A few stories I definitely had fond memories of even a few weeks after reading the book: A Thousand Words a Day and One Charming Note by Lisa See; The Missing Photograph by Caroline Leavitt. The introduction by Elizabeth Benedict was quite emotional to read as well.

Since the chapters are divided by authors and their piece. One can read this book all in one sitting, or divide them up and read one or a few at a time. I highly recommend this book to all who want to study the complex mother/daughter relationship, or just as a simple gift for a Mom or a daughter.

I received the ARC from NetGalley…and later purchased a copy as a Mother’s Day gift for my best friend, who has a “it’s complicated” relationship with her Mom.





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Children of the Jacaranda Tree - An Insider's book about Iran, and its suffering people

Children of the Jacaranda Tree by Sahar Delijani

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


As a lover for fiction from faraway lands, I noticed and kept track of this title way before publication date. I love to read about how war and history could affect all of us, no matter where we are, where we were from. This is the debut novel of Sahar Delijani. She drew examples for this story from her parents and other family members, who were actually imprisoned in the Evin Prison in the 1980s. Ms. Delijani was born there. One could safely say that this book is part memoir, part fiction.

The book opened with a heart-gripping chapter. A pregnant woman prisoner, Azar, was being taking to a local hospital fanned by “sisters” and “brothers,” or male and female prison guards from Evin. She was blindfolded and suffering from humility, harsh treatment and contraction pain. When she finally was allowed to sit down somewhere, she thought a doctor was going to see her. Yet an interrogator came in, with paper and pen, hoping to break her during her time of weakness and pain, with her baby about to slip out… This was the best chapter of the book.

Not much is known about the Evin Prison, since most prisoners were blindfolded while being transported within; it has the most efficient interrogative methods that could break any human, and it was crowded. It was built to fit 350 prisoners but holds up to 15,000 all the time. It’s also called Evin University, due to the number of intellectuals who were imprisoned, tortured or killed there. It’s the prison not only for actual criminals, but also intellectuals, students, activists, Christians, journalists… In other words, any one who’s believed to oppose the Iranian government. The prison is right at the border of the city of Tehran, and its cold tall walls could be visible from many homes.

The stories in the book took place during 1980’s in Tehran, where there was a mass arrest of political activists, to the present, around 2011 in Europe, American and Iran. The chapters went back and forth between the two periods. There were many characters, which were all somewhat related to one to one another and somehow looked, talked and act similar to each other due to the lack or development or similar descriptions: dark hair, dark eyes, and stocky for men. They were the prisoners of Evin and their children who grew up with the effect of war and their emotionally broken parents. Among these kids were Omid, Sara, Neda and Forough who were cousins. The kids carry their parents pain, so they are also broken, suffering and in no way happy or normal, although their love for the country remain strong, even after fleeing to the west with their parents.

I really wanted to give the book 5 stars. It has, as predicted, opened my eyes to the history of Iran, which I only had just a vague idea about. I loved the intended plot; I loved the concept; I loved the way the author narrates, with such lyrical prose and well-used metaphors and symbolism. However, the book is a bit disjointed, the characters were all very similar to each other (except for one or two), the plot did not flow smoothly enough so the book was read like a collection of vignettes. The descriptions were not only weak for characters, but also for the most important place, the prison. The cousins’ home and relationship were just barely scanned over. There’s so much potential to elaborate, to embellish… Unfortunately some sentiments and descriptions were used once too many, like the author was trying too hard to come up with more and new descriptive words or poetic terms. I ended up flipping through pages just to get the book going.

However, I still think this book is worth reading as a debut novel and as an introduction to the sad history and present situation of Iran, since I could feel the author’s love for her country in every single page. A hardback might be better and easier to read than the ebook version due to the various characters that have similar names, descriptions and feelings.

This is a 3.5 star book, the 0.5 extra is for the poetic words and the great opening.






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The Mountain of Light - The story of the Koh-I-Noor Diamond

The Mountain of Light: A Novel by Indu Sundaresan

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


There was a question on one of the book pages I frequent: "Name the last book that kept you up all night." It was an easy question for me to answer. Since I read all the time, I hardly stay up all night to finish a book; I have all day to do it. However, in a trip to Thailand many years ago, I hid in the bathroom to finish a book, a rather difficult book due to all the historical facts. I hid in the bathroom so my light did not bother the other members of my family (prior Kindle time). The book, The Twentieth Wife, was by this author. Since then, I've read a few more books by Indu Sundaresan, and none has disappointed me. I enjoyed this story as much as, if not more than, all the others.

This book, like all her books, was written with intensive research into the history of India (also England in this case.) The story is centered around the Koh-i-Noor diamond, a gorgeous yellow diamond that's was held by rulers in Hindu, Mughal, Turkic, Afghan, Sikh and finally British, countries. The diamond was once around 186 carats and its name means "Mountain of Light." It has a curse that is believed for centuries to bring bad luck to all its male owners. They suffered from sicknesses, the loss of their throne, or worse, death. Only women owners could wear it safely without suffering any ill effects.

“The diamond is said to have held a curse. Legend had it that the Kohinoor could be safely possessed only by a woman, that no man who had it would long hold his kingdom, and that it could never be worn in the official crown of a monarch (hence, perhaps, the reason it was worn in an armlet or set in a throne). In India, Persia, and Afghanistan, during the diamond’s tumultuous and bloody history, only men owned the Kohinoor.” **

With her known beautiful words and realistic descriptions of people and sights of the period, along with reliable facts, the story begins when the Koh-i-Noor was given to the Punjab ruler Maharajah Ranjit Singh so he could help the Afghan ruler Shah Shuja regain his lost throne. The story ended with the death of Dulip Singh in Paris and the ownership of Koh-i-Noor in British Empire. From page one, the reader will feel transported back to the sound and sight of old India. Through out the book, you will experience the love of the young who are full of hope for a better future; the power of rulers, the betrayal and loyalty of human, the architecture and sights of India, the brutality of conquest, and the sadness and hopelessness of old age and along with losing one’s country. The smell of Chai and saffron will still linger after you close the book. It’s the best journey a reader could ever hope to achieve.

Other than everything that mentioned above...this story offers a very interesting take on the effect of colonialism. It's quite a sad book to read. I couldn't help but feel a sense of loss for the diamond, for the puppet maharajah Dulip Singh...and for his three children that all had no heir. History, which could never be forgotten, influences all of us. Will the human race really learn from their past mistakes?

If you have time, google the Koh-i-Noor and admire it on the crown of the Queen of England. It’s breathtakingly beautiful, regardless how it was obtained…

**Thanks to Washington Square Press for a preview galley. The quote was from the advanced reader's copy.




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