Non-Fiction – Page 19 – Ryan's Book Blog

How to be Human

May 22, 2021 by Ryan

Background

“How to Be Human: An Autistic Man’s Guide to Life” was published in April of 2021 and is the autobiographical account of Jory Fleming, a high functioning person with autism who won a Rhodes Scholarship for the University of Oxford. A writer (Lyric Winik) did a series of interviews with Jory and strung them into the narrative that became this book. The book attempts to explain how Jory thinks and his perspective on life.

My Thoughts

Though I found the material interesting, I don’t believe it is relatable to other people with autism. To paraphrase Jory, “this is just how I think” and “I find it harder to relate to other people with autism.” My hat is off to Jory for what he has been able to achieve. Or more specifically, my hat is off to Jory’s mom who has given him daily support for his entire life.

Honestly, I’m bothered by some aspects of the popular notion of autism. There seem to be many people who romanticize autism and seem to see it as a net benefit. (E.g. Someone might claim a person with autism has an above-average IQ. These people evidently don’t know what autism is or how IQ is measured.) While these people aren’t actually diagnosed with any disorder, they are more than happy to claim the benefits as they see them. The usual humble brag is something akin to “I have Asperger’s.” This is usually an excuse for being socially awkward and/or a poor attempt to claim superior skills in analytical tasks. However, I’m not sure most of these people have been confronted by someone who has severe autism. Someone who is incapable of communication and truly does not “see” the world around them. Just like Jory’s mom, there are unsung heroes who devote their lives to making the world a better place for these people.

In short, all of us think differently. Autism is a spectrum which means there comes a point when the spectrum bumps up against the “normal.” Of course, that leads to another question, “What is normal?” Answer? “Normal” is just another bell curve of behaviors. The line between “normal” and “autistic and even “sane” and “insane” is uncomfortable thin. It all comes down to definitions and those definitions are always in flux.

So… I believe there is likely a little autism in all of us and we are all just a little off. That doesn’t give us super rain-man mental powers and most of us are able to negotiate society. We all feel awkward at times and some of us are insensitive jerks. It’s how we play the hand we are given which makes the difference. If it was all you could do not to kill someone on the way to work then I say, “good for you!” (However, if that’s how close you are to the line, expect the rest of us to lock you up somewhere safe in the near future.) The rest of us will continue doing what we can to do our best, day by day and sometimes hour by hour.

Recommendation

I’d skip this one.

On Call in Hell

May 15, 2021 by Ryan

Background

Published in 2007, On Call in Hell is the story of a man who served a tour as a Marine officer and later became a Navy doctor. He shares his journey and juxtaposes those two perspectives as he served in Iraq.

My Thoughts

I’d never met a Marine who went into Navy medicine so this was an interesting read. Still, I’ve met a number of Navy Corpsman and the attitude was pretty close to what I would have expected. I would have preferred it be read by the author since some of the saying didn’t quite come out correctly. I felt like there may have been a bit of humble brag going on but hey, it’s his book.

Recommendation

A very interesting look at a relatively unknown field. If you have interest in military medicine, I feel this book would be a good place to start.

What it is Like to Go to War

May 12, 2021 by Ryan

Background

Published in Sep of 2011, What it is Like to Go to War is a book about the psychological impacts of war and becoming a warrior. The author (a Vietnam veteran) makes the argument that we should do a much better job preparing our warfighters for what they will encounter in theater.

My Thoughts

Certainly, a thought-provoking book and one set in its day. It had been 10 years after the 911 era and the author draws a number of parallels to his time in Vietnam. The more I learn about that war and how our warfighters were treated, the sadder it becomes. It is interesting that the trend of remote war is becoming more and more prevalent as the Marines are deactivating their tanks and towed artillery batteries. There have been so many changes that it is only natural we won’t be able to adjust. Particularly, as we’ve all had a year of being sequestered from others. The term I hear most often these days is “resilience.” We say it is important but I’m not sure we know how to get there…

Recommendation

It is an important topic but the content is dated.

How to Think Like a Roman Emperor

May 4, 2021 by Ryan

Background

Published in April of 2020, How to Think Like a Roman Emperor is a study on the meditations of Marcus Aurelius and stoicism in general. The book guides you through the history of stoicism and through some of it’s main tenets.

My Thoughts

I really enjoyed this book and it was a compelling read. I felt the author did a great job of going through the histories and linking them to the present day. I also enjoyed that the author had come to my University and one of my employees had filmed him talking about the book. So I got a little bonus.

Recommendation

Great read and worth the time

Embrace the Suck

May 3, 2021 by Ryan

Background

Published in December of 2020, Embrace the Suck is a book about taking on and overcoming the obstacles in life from the perspective of a former Navy SEAL.

My Thoughts

This was a decent read and pretty motivating. I felt he was a little over the top with some of his descriptions and language but I guess that’s par for the course. He had some practical applications which, had I followed them, would have made the read more impactful.

Recommendation

It was Ok

Like War

April 22, 2021 by Ryan

Background

Published in 2018, Like War gives the terrifying truth of how social media has been weaponized and will continue to be going forward. It shows us how we are starting to lose track of who we can trust and how bad we are at sussing out what is real and what is fake.

My Thoughts

This book was suggested as a possible course to help Marines think about what is going on in social media. It is a great book but the subject matter changes so much that I could feel it was 3 years out of date. The book also feels unbalanced. Sections of it read like an indictment of the Trump administration and other “alt-right” organizations yet, there was no mention of anything negative on the left. Coupled with President Biden in office, and the fact his administration hasn’t changed anything, it feels more out of date. However, I really enjoyed the book and feel the concepts covered are relevant and important to understand.

Recommendation

Great book but take the political commentary with a grain of salt.

Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates

April 6, 2021 by Ryan

Background

Published in November of 2015, Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates gives the story of one of America’s first conflict overseas. It details how we went from paying ransoms to fighting in our own self-defense putting us on to the world stage.

My Thoughts

This was a very interesting book. Given that I work with Marines, you would think I would have been more familiar with this story but there was a lot that surprised me. I knew we paid off the pirates to leave our ships alone until we were ready to defend ourselves but I didn’t know how close that struggle was or the real story. This was a pivotal moment in our history and could have gone very differently.

Recommendation

Great read. I highly recommend it.

A Very Punchable Face

March 25, 2021 by Ryan

Background

Published in July of 2020, A Very Punchable Face is the biography of Colin Jost who has been a “head writer” and cast member of Saturday Night Live for several years.

My Thoughts

Seeing the how the “sausage is made” can be unpleasant at times. This was one of those times for me. In short, I didn’t enjoy the book. For me, it was a reminder of how different some people’s lives are and how little hope and reason they see in their own existence. Still, I was pleasantly surprised with the archetypal story of a “regular guy” making it to the top. That was a fun story arc but most of the antidotes along the way just didn’t need to be told.

Recommendation

Skip this one.

Left of Bang

March 10, 2021 by Ryan

Background

Published in 2014, Left of Bang is the book outlining the ideas of the Combat Hunter program in the Marine Corps.

My Thoughts

A very interesting book but I believe the author is correct when he mentions how most people have already learned how to do this. I’ve had many conversations over the years with people who understand and who do not. When you’ve really been to a dangerous place, you tend to continue to be on alert. You continue to watch and observe. The Marines call this “situational awareness” and if they want extra attention put on it they say, “Put your head on a swivel!”

It is a hard concept to teach but a harder one two learn. To quote my old Sensai, “pain makes believers.” It has been interesting to see this program come and go in the Marine Corps.

Recommendation

I’m glad I read it but I’m not sure how much I got out of it. The biggest benefit was the jargon they used for the concepts they were illustrating.

A World in Disarray

March 6, 2021 by Ryan

Background

Published in January of 2017, A World in Disarray is a sobering view of geopolitics from Richard Haass who is an American diplomat and has been president of the Council on Foreign Relations since July 2003. The book outlines the major struggles and players of the world at the time President Trump came into office.

My Thoughts

As the book started, I thought this was very dated material. It is amazing how much has changed since early 2017. I think few people have really been paying attention of how the United States has moved throughout the international community during the Trump administration. There was real fear with Russia, North Korea, and China before he took office. While there are still issues there, we aren’t anywhere close to what existed as he took office.

That said, it is vital we keep looking back to history to instruct our steps forward. In our hyper-connected world, we seem to be so swayed in the thoughts and trends of the moment that we forget these roads have been traveled before. We can watch how they play out and it isn’t pretty.

I’m very interested to see where we go under the Biden administration. Will the world powers took to the United States for guidance? Will they the respect us? Fear us? Perhaps they will simply disregard us as we squabble over the ridiculous and eat ourselves alive with a runaway debt.

Recommendation

A great book and a snapshot of the times