Six Books Added To Next Prize Pool

Last week I announced the winner of the first prize pool.  And announced the first book added to the next giveaway when the blog reaches 500 subscribers.

The Paperback of: Monsoon – The Indian Ocean and the Future of American Power added to the next giveaway when we reach 500 subscribers.

If you’re interested in global strategy.  And brief histories of global trade in Southeast Asia, India, Pakistan, the rest of The Subcontinent, Indonesia, and other Pacific countries you’ll love this book.

I’d rate the book 5/5.

Today I’m adding five more books to the next giveaway.

The hardcover of: Rogue Elephant – Harnessing the Power Of India’s Unruly Democracy.  This book takes an in-depth look at the problems with, solutions to, and hope for India’s democracy.

The book takes a mostly negative view of the problems and corruption within India’s democracy.  And since I haven’t visited the country yet – plan to – I can’t tell you my thoughts on whether the book is right or not.

Saying that I’d rate the book 4/5 until I can visit myself.

The hardcover of: The Big Rich – The Rise and Fall of the Greatest Texas Oil Fortunes.  I’ve not read this book yet so below is from Publishers Weekly talking about the book.

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Capitalism at its most colorful oozes across the pages of this engrossing study of independent oil men. Vanity Fair special correspondent Burrough (coauthor, Barbarians at the Gate) profiles the Big Four oil dynasties of H.L. Hunt, Roy Cullen, Clint Murchison and Sid Richardson, along with their cronies, rivals, families and, in Hunt’s case, bigamous second and third families. The saga begins heroically in the early 20th-century oil boom, with wildcatters roaming the Texas countryside drilling one dry hole after another, scrounging money and fending off creditors until gushers of black gold redeem them. Their second acts as garish nouveaux riches with strident right-wing politics are entertaining, if less dramatic. Decline sets in as rising production costs and cheaper Middle Eastern oil erode profits, and a feckless, feuding second generation squanders family fortunes on debauchery and reckless investment—H.L.’s sons’ efforts in 1970 to corner the silver market bankrupted them and almost took down Wall Street. This is a portrait of capitalism as white-knuckle risk taking, yielding fruitful discoveries for the fathers, but only sterile speculation for the sons—a story that resonates with today’s economic upheaval. (Jan. 27)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. –This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

The hardcover of: Founding Brothers.

If you’re at all interested in The Revolutionary War era in the United States you’ll love this book.

I’ve studied US history a lot, but this book taught me some things I’ve never read anywhere else about America’s Founding Fathers.

I’d rate this book 4.5/5.

Paperback of The World Is Flat

I’ve not read this book yet so below is a description from the Washington Post.

Captivating . . . an enthralling read. To his great credit, Friedman embraces much of his flat world’s complexity, and his reporting brings to vibrant life some beguiling characters and trends. . . . [The World is Flat] is also more lively, provocative, and sophisticated than the overwhelming bulk of foreign policy commentary these days. We’ve no real idea how the twenty-first century’s history will unfold, but this terrifically stimulating book will certainly inspire readers to start thinking it all through. (Warren Bass, The Washington Post)

And the last book added to the next prize pool today is a hardcover of: StrengthsFinder 2.0.

I’ve not read this book yet so below is a review from the most helpful review on Amazon.

545 of 624 people found the following review helpful

What are the strengths YOU can rely on?, July 14, 2009

By

Strengths Fanatic

This review is from: StrengthsFinder 2.0 (Hardcover)

Strengths Finder 2.0 is the follow up to Gallup’s Now, Discover Your Strengths. The book includes a revamped version of the StrengthsFinder test that shows you not just what your top five strengths are, but also how you rank in the rest of the 34 strengths from Clifton’s model. The new book is light on content (very light) but the test is a substantial improvement.Here’s how the book is set up:StrengthsFinder: The Next Generation
(A short introduction explaining the need for the enhanced edition of the test based upon new thinking and research in strengths psychology)I: Finding Your Strengths
(A 30-page overview of strengths psychology and how the Gallup system works)II: Applying Your Strengths
(150 pages outlining each of the 34 themes including what people with that strength look like, how to manage them, and ideas for action if you have that strength).The StrengthsFinder
(If you haven’t taken it before, the code to take the test is provided in a packet inside the book. You actually have to buy the book to take the test)

Emotional Intelligence 2.0 is another book I really enjoyed that follows the SF 2.0 format. Obviously, that test measures emotional intelligence (EQ), but Emotional Intelligence 2.0has a unique format where the test tells you which of the book’s 66 strategies will increase your EQ the most.

Already more than $80 worth of prizes are now in this prize pool.  And this will continue to build while we approach 500 subscribers.

To make sure you have a chance to win these books subscribe here.