Sara's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay

This book was a disappointment (I'm sick with a cold and I'm not mincing words).

I have to admit that initially, I enjoyed the way it stylistically jumped between two stories: one based in 1942 and the other in 2002. I was also pleased to see that the author (or publisher, more likely) represented the 1942 story by using a type font and formatting typical of that era.

The 1942 story, based on the Vel' d'Hiv' roundup, is horrific. I didn't know about this event and I found it terribly disturbing. Within a few alternating chapters, the book quickly its appeal and I began to skim read. I gave up on the book when it became evident that de Rosnay was unable to sustain the book's initial structure. At some point, the book was told only for the 2002 perspective.

I couldn't help but think of Blindness by Jose Saramago. This book also described unimaginable horrific, but Saramago was a master and made Blindness a literary work that was a joy to read, and altered one's view of the world. De Rosnay is not in the same league -- not even playing the same game as Saramgo. So again, the book was a disappointment and I wouldn't recommend it.

Here is the publisher's blurb:
Paris, July 1942: Sarah, a ten year-old girl, is brutally arrested with her family by the French police in the Vel' d'Hiv' roundup, but not before she locks her younger brother in a cupboard in the family's apartment, thinking that she will be back within a few hours.
Paris, May 2002: On Vel' d'Hiv's 60th anniversary, journalist Julia Jarmond is asked to write an article about this black day in France's past. Through her contemporary investigation, she stumbles onto a trail of long-hidden family secrets that connect her to Sarah. Julia finds herself compelled to retrace the girl's ordeal, from that terrible term in the Vel d'Hiv', to the camps, and beyond. As she probes into Sarah's past, she begins to question her own place in France, and to reevaluate her marriage and her life.

Mistress of Nothing

I was rather disappointed in this book. As a GG winner, I expected more and after reading The Help, I expected more tension, more depth by this work. Instead, the book seemed to languish, and I was glad when it ended.

Publisher's blurb:
Lady Duff Gordon is the toast of Victorian London society. But when her debilitating tuberculosis means exile, she and her devoted lady''s maid, Sally, set sail for Egypt. It is Sally who describes, with a mixture of wonder and trepidation, the odd menage (marshalled by the resourceful Omar) that travels down the Nile to a new life in Luxor. When Lady Duff Gordon undoes her stays and takes to native dress, throwing herself into weekly salons, language lessons and excursions to the tombs, Sally too adapts to a new world, which affords her heady and heartfelt freedoms never known before. But freedom is a luxury that a maid can ill-afford, and when Sally grasps more than her status entitles her to, she is brutally reminded that she is mistress of nothing.

The Help, by Kathryn Stockett

This book was a nice surprise and a real departure from my typical reading. I was amazed at the level of suspense the author could create in a domestic situation discussing quotidien life. I was impressed. I've alrady started The Mistress of Nothing that features a servant in the 1860s, so it will be interesting to compare.

The publisher's blurb:
Aibileen is a black maid in 1962 Jackson, Mississippi, who's always taken orders quietly, but lately she's unable to hold her bitterness back. Her friend Minny has never held her tongue but now must somehow keep secrets about her employer that leave her speechless. White socialite Skeeter just graduated college. She's full of ambition, but without a husband, she's considered a failure. Together, these seemingly different women join together to write a tell-all book about work as a black maid in the South, that could forever alter their destinies and the life of a small town.

Major Pettigrew's Last Stand

What a delightful book. It is poignant, funny, insightful -- utterly charming, just like Major Pettigrew himself. How could such a lovely man produce such a pompass ass of a son? Even he had his moments, though. Again, delightful. They kind of book that can be enjoyed by many. And it's the author's first book! I can't wait for her next one.

Here is the publisher's blurb:

Written with a delightfully dry sense of humour and the wisdom of a born storyteller, Major Pettigrew's Last Stand explores the risks one takes when pursuing happiness in the face of family obligation and tradition.

When retired Major Pettigrew strikes up an unlikely friendship with Mrs. Ali, the Pakistani village shopkeeper, he is drawn out of his regimented world and forced to confront the realities of life in the twenty-first century. Brought together by a shared love of literature and the loss of their respective spouses, the Major and Mrs. Ali soon find their friendship on the cusp of blossoming into something more. But although the Major was actually born in Lahore, and Mrs. Ali was born in Cambridge, village society insists on embracing him as the quintessential local and her as a permanent foreigner. The Major has always taken special pride in the village, but will he be forced to choose between the place he calls home and a future with Mrs. Ali?

The Promise of Rain by Donna Milner

Ahhh, what an enjoyable book. I thoroughly enjoyed it... I liked it so much that I this may very well by my Christmas book to friends.


Ethie Coulter was born after her father Howard returned from the war in 1945. She never knew him as he was before, never knew that he had been an open, loving man and a devoted husband. When his wife dies in bizarre circumstances, Howard must take on the burden of looking after eleven-year-old Ethie and her two older brothers. Why, Ethie wonders, is he so silent and withdrawn? Howard Coulter was one of two thousand Canadian soldiers sent to the Far East a month before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour. Surviving the fierce battle for Hong Kong, he became a POW, moving from camp to notorious camp, watching his friends die of disease, starvation and worse. Yet Howard carries more than the physical and mental scars inflicted by his captors. Something happened in Hong Kong, a secret that he has carried for nearly two decades. Ethie, inquisitive and fearless, will be the one to work her way towards the truth and help her father come to terms with the past

Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

I just finished the Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins. I read the first two back-to-back and the last installment did not disappoint. Here is the summaries for each book in order of publication

Hunger Games (2008)
From the Publisher
In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlaying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one girl and one boy between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she is forced to represent her district in the Games. But Katniss has also resolved to outwit the creators of the games. To do that she will have to be the last person standing at the end of the deadly ordeal, and that will take every ounce of strength and cunning she has.

Catching Fire (2009)
From the Publisher
Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has won the annual Hunger Games with fellow district tribute Peeta Mellark. But it was a victory won by defiance of the Capitol and their harsh rules. Katniss and Peeta should be happy. After all, they have just won for themselves and their families a life of safety and plenty. But there are rumors of rebellion among the subjects, and Katniss and Peeta, to their horror, are the faces of that rebellion. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge.

Mockingjay (just released)
From the Publisher
Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has survived the Hunger Games twice. But now that she's made it out of the bloody arena alive, she's still not safe. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge. Who do they think should pay for the unrest? Katniss. And what's worse, President Snow has made it clear that no one else is safe either. Not Katniss's family, not her friends, not the people of District 12. Powerful and haunting, this thrilling final installment of Suzanne Collins's groundbreaking The Hunger Games trilogy promises to beone of the most talked about books of the year.

Summer Reads

I'm shocked that I haven't written since April. Taking my first course towards my DPA took away my focus (not marks to date). I have however, read a number of books during my two week vacation in July (no Internet access):

• Girl with the Dragon Tatoo, Stieg Larsson
• Outlander, by Gabaldon (again)
• Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay
• Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follet(again - I love father Phillip)

Five seconds at a time

Here is an interesting new book that caught my attention. I've just started it but already some points resonate with me. The opening is gripping and the author makes connections to his major theme.

One section was particularly poignant. It discusses the pursuit of excellence as opposed to perfection. To strive for excellence cultivates a culture of achievement and innovation. He goes on to espouse that excellence is not to be confusion for perfection. A culture that values perfection will also create a culture of fear. People do not strive if they will criticized for not being perfect. It makes me think of the mantra, "only Allah is perfect."

I'm looking forward to continuing my reading.

From the Publisher: When a tragic mountain-climbing accident left business professor Denis Shackel stranded on Mount Ruapehu in New Zealand, he turned to the leaderships principles that he'd been teaching for years to survive the longest night of his life.

Alone, with temperatures plunging to -30 degrees Celsius, Shackel first broke the night into five thousand five-second intervals. He decided to deal with only one interval at a time -- a strategy based on his knowledge that effective leaders break big challenges into smaller, more manageable ones. Then, stepping back to see the bigger picture, he relied on vision, intuition, and faith to keep him alive. Shackel emerged from this harrowing experience having cemented his belief that the principles fundamental to leadership are also key to tackling any challenge. Since his mountain-top experience, Shackel has been helping students, executives and corporations use the proven "five seconds at a time" approach for success in business and in life.

At a time when many leaders are feeling overwhelmed, Five Seconds at a Time provides effective tools and strategies to excel. With its compelling mix of survival, leadership principles and real-life stories, it will inspire readers to achieve the seemingly impossible.

Forget SMART goals; go for HARD ones

Check out today's Globe and Mail article, Forget SMART goals, go for the hard ones, by Harvey Schachter.

I have worked on so many strategic plans and project plans where we have preached the SMART goals – goals that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time. This article states that SMART do not correlate with success.

In fact, the article suggests that you forget SMART and try HARD:

Heartfelt: My goals will enrich the lives of somebody besides me.

Animated: I can vividly picture how great it will feel when I achieve my goals.

Required: My goals are absolutely necessary to help this company.

Difficult: I will have to learn new skills and leave my comfort zone to achieve my assigned goals for this year.

This is the stuff that I can embrace, promote and demonstrate because let's face it, I want to achieve great things and I want others to be able to do it, too.

Enough of me ranting about this. Read the article yourself: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/managing/morning-manager/forget-smart-goals-go-for-the-hard-ones/article1546926/

7 habits of highly effective people by Stephen R. Covey

I was so surprised when my husband recently bought this book. First published in 1989 it has supposedly sold over 15 million in 38 languages. And it is still relevant today. I bought a copy years ago and havent' reviewed it in years.

Here is a summary of the 7 habits
http://www.quickmba.com/mgmt/7hab/

Accepted into DPA @ UWO

I got the news on Monday. My application was accepted so I'll be studying public admin at UWO in May...
What have I gotten myself into!

Next book to discuss: Managing Transitions by Bridges.

Getting things done: the art of stress-free productivity

Here is another book often cited in Personal MBA reading lists, Getting things done by David Allen.

I own this book, and have renewed it a number of times, yet I haven't fully embraced it. I strive to have one file/ project open on my desk at any one time, but no one would believe it if they saw my desk right now...

Here is a summary of the book as posted on wikipedia:

But I have to reduce my stress. It is affecting me physically. So instead of focussing on the mechanics of project management, and time management, I'm going to work on my mind set for the next two weeks and reduce my stress. Here is one title that I'll be reviewing:

Power Over Stress, by Kenford Nedd, M.D.
Publisher's blurb: This is a clear description of what happens to the body and brain under stress. It shows you how to avoid becoming stressed in difficult situations and it offers practical, scientifically valid techniques for reducing the impact of negative impact of stress on the physiology. The book outlines in simple, easy-to-follow steps, the relationship between stress and disease and stress and performance and gives practical ideas and techniques to avoid the unhealthy consequences of stress.

I'll keep you posted on my thoughts as I review this work (I'm skipping Part One: So you think you know all about stress... since I have some side effects already. I'm going right to Part Two, From Stress REaction to Calm Response).

2010 Goals update

I'm achieving some goals, and some may have to be revisited, or given a higher commitment:

• Discuss Personal MBA in 2010 -- in progress
• Visit the AGO 6 times this year -- once, so far, but hopefully again in Feb.
• One date night per month, minimum! -- so far, two in 2010
• Review daily, weekly list to create more personal time -- hmmm, a bit more of a commitment is needed here
• Enroll in public admin course by Feb. deadline -- I sent things off on Friday. Now I have to wait and hope my transcripts get there without a problem
• Exercise 3 times per week through TP, Pilates, and 5 km runs under 25 minutes -- I'm only getting two work-outs a week and some low key activities such as walking and skating. I need to exercise first thing in the morning or as soon as I get home from work.
• Plan our summer vacation by Q1 '10 e.g. camping at Toronto Zoo, cottage in summer, Christmas escape again for the windows -- the cottage is booked, I have the sign-up date for the zoo in my calendar, but we still don't have E's summer camps committed or our wedding anniversary planned. Alas, if money wasn't an issue, I would it all completed by now.

Dealing with Difficult People

Today I attended a one day seminar, Dealing with Difficult People. Although having investigated "difficult" personalities in the past, especially "tanks," I thought it was time to have a refresher. I was expecting

• some strategies to help diffuse upset/irate library users
• remain calm: distance myself and keep my emotion in check
• return with a list of what to do and what not to do when dealing with a difficult patron

Instead, the seminar focused on the subtitle, How to communicate with tact and skill. The majority of the day was spent discussing the need to listen with your ears and eyes, and how to communicate to the different behavior styles.

The personality that can push my buttons: "get it right" behavior. These people seek perfection but nothing measures up. If they feel threatened, they will shut down. They are negative and complain using such statements as, "I have a bad feeling about this." They seem to forfeit any ability to think with agility and creativity and like rules. Very black and white thinkers.

I'm typically fine with the "get it done" people. Goodness knows, I like to achieve and get things done. Extreme get it done people can be problematic including the following:
Tanks -- one needs to stand your ground, and focus on the bottom line and look at the underlying problem
Snipers -- one needs to stop, look and rewind. How? Ask clarifying questions about their intent
Know-it-alls -- highly competent and knowledgeable people, but tend to be extremely controlling and have minimal tolerance for correction and differences in opinions. Their way is the right way -- the end. How to deal with them: know your stuff and be prepared.
Coping with excuse-makers and blamers: go over actions plans, document, document, document, and confront them when they don't do something.

We also discussed the people who need to get appreciation aka the entertainers. Typical behaviour with these people include the fact that they are focused on people, display creativity, warmth, charisma, and energy. They need to be recognized and applauded. They can communicate directly and elaborately. Their strengths include their fun loving attitude, caring about other people, persuasive, able to get their point across and are optimistic.

The fourth group, the Get Along People. They focus on people and want to get along. The need to be liked, get along, communicate indirectly and considerately. BUT they don't like making decisions, they tend to waste time, seem illogical and can be overly emotional.

Towards the end of the day, we discussed some conflict resolution using "I statements" instead of "You" e.g. don't say, "You made me feel..."

An excellent reminder: Know what you want when you deal with difficult people and to confront them (Stephen Covey)

This seminar also reminded me of other titles relating to today:
Now, find your strengths, by Buckingham
The instructor also suggested the author, Brian Tracy -- a guru for goal setting, personal success and he's Canadian!

In essence, the day stressed the need to know yourself, know your strengths, weaknesses, including your hot buttons, and modify your communication to meet the behaviour needs of others.

Death by Meeting, by Patrick Lencioni

I'm planning my first staff meeting for the year, and I want to ensure that it is effective. I've sat through a number of staff meetings in my day. Typically, individuals drone on about a variety of topics, but as discussed in the book, Death by Meeting, there is no drama, and little to no engagement. The chair's main goal is to get through a huge number of agenda items with as little conflict as possible.

I don't want to run my meetings like this. According to this book, the key to starting off a good meeting is to start with a bit of drama -- a hook -- within the first 10 minutes of the meeting, so that staff become engaged. In other words, give people a reason to care.

I already know that I want to review key issues coming up for the department and make sure people are well informed. I plan to issue the month end report the week before the meeting and ask staff if they would any clarification on the different topics.

I want to make sure we discuss effective Reader's Advisory tactics and ensure people know their expectations at the information desk. I need to challenge the group -- they're intelligent and opinionated, so I need to channel this.

Thirdly, we need to discuss 2010 goals and set the stage so that people know they will get setting personal goals for the department this year.

So, I need to give more thought to the structure of the meeting, and how I want to approach the RA portion of the meeting and how to set the stage for one-on-on goal setting for individuals.

Here is a link to an executive summary of this book by Lencioni: http://www.cmibusinessplanning.com/Death%20By%20Meeting%20Summary.pdf

Topics to date:

• Clarify and expand upon upcoming issues e.g. projects in the works, and how it will affect them


• Reinforce our mission and customer service


• provide reader's advisory coaching and provide break-out sessions for staff


• Set expectations by reviewing 2010 goals

Happy New Year!

So far I'm not doing that well with my goals -- I missed my 6:55 a.m. outdoor workout this morning. Considering it was -13 C, perhaps it was a good thing that I slept in. I do want to get more attuned to my body, so perhaps I'm doing that today.

I'm toying with the idea of starting a new blog:

• personal MBA Southern style
• my personal MBA southern style

I'll have to mull that one over a bit more...