Book Review: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

Station Eleven

Author: Emily St. John Mandel

 Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group

Date of Publication: September 9, 2014

Pages: 352

"Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were.  But without it we go nowhere." 

- Carl Sagan

     Emily St. John has exercised her imagination to the max in this fascinating novel.    It is a truly remarkable book which transcends genre.  Station Eleven has been categorized as a science fiction novel which the author disputes.  She considers it a work of literary fiction.  The premise is that a rapidly evolving flu pandemic kills 99% of the world's population in fairly short order.  The beginning of the book is truly frightening as the fatal illness is spread world-wide from the Republic of Georgia by air travelers.  Panic and survival instincts take over.

     The story begins in Toronto as several of the main characters are introduced pre-pandemic.  The first section of the  book is as terrifying as any Stephen King novel as the author describes the chaos which occurs in response to the disaster.  Things which are ordinarily taken for granted, such as news broadcasts, disappear as the people responsible for them succumb to illness.  The story then follows several survivors as they establish small enclaves in deserted airports and other public buildings.

       It is interesting to view people's reactions as their smart phones and laptops run out of power and there is no way to recharge them.  As time goes by a society evolves.  A traveling acting troupe performs Shakespeare and live symphonic music; a primitive newspaper is produced; a museum to the "former life" is established.  The author delves into the question of how humanity, rather than humans, survives this natural holocaust.  A religious fanatic, resembling an Old Testament prophet, makes an appearance as well.

     This book was published in 2014 and won the Arthur C. Clarke Award in May, 2015 and was also a finalist for the National Book Award and the PEN/Faulkner Award.  Station Eleven deserves all of these accolades.  It is pure artistry how Ms. Mandel has fabricated a devastated world with a newly ordered society.  It is intriguing to witness how her characters respond to their new reality and adapt and persevere.  She also has the genius to introduce a clever turn of events at the very conclusion which leaves the door wide open for a sequel.  I can't wait!

Book Review: Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain by Oliver Sacks

Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain

Author: Oliver Sacks

Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group

Date of Publication: September 23, 2008

Pages: 425

     Oliver Sacks died this past August at the age of 80.  He was a professor of Neurology at New York University and is best known for his essays and books related to many of the fascinating clinical problems he observed during his long career.  His 1973 book Awakenings, an auto-biographical look at post-encephalitic patients becoming "unlocked" after doses of L-Dopa, was developed into an Oscar-nominated movie starring Robin Williams and Robert De Niro.  Musicophilia was originally released in 2007.  In this intriguing book Oliver Sacks explores music as part of disease processes and, further, as part of treatments for other disorders.  

     The book opens with a case study of an orthopedic surgeon struck by lightning who became obsessed with piano music and learning to play the piano.  This physician "once an easy-going, genial family man, almost indifferent to music - was inspired, even possessed, by music, and scarcely had time for anything else."  He eventually loses his family and job because of his obsession.

     Many more case studies follow, including patients with musical seizures, musical savants, stroke and dementia patients.  The sections on patients with profound neurological deficits who maintain their ability to play and appreciate music are fascinating.  The author tells all of these stories with grace and style, managing to entertain as well as educate the reader.  Much of the current understanding of complex neurologic syndromes comes from modern functional brain imaging.  These techniques have been used to map the brain and define which areas of the brain are responsible for musical ability, learning and appreciation.  This data is included in the discussions of the disorders.

    Sacks deftly explains the rationale for music therapy, explaining how the astute therapist can manipulate functioning areas of the brain.  Music therapy can be used in motor disorders such as Parkinson's disease to reduce uncontrollable movement and can also be used in dementia patients to calm and ease the distress which many of them suffer.  The author states:

"As music seems to resist or survive the distortion of dreams or of Parkinsonism, or the losses of amnesia or Alzheimer's, so it may resist the distortions of psychosis and be able to penetrate the deepest states of melancholia or madness, sometimes when nothing else can."

     I can truthfully say that I remember very little neuro-anatomy or physiology from medical school.  Also, much has changed in the decades since I last was exposed to any of this.  This book helps explain many very complex medical issues and engenders a true appreciation of the complexity of neurologic and psychiatric conditions.  The role which music can play in the pathophysiology of disease as well as in the treatment plan for many disorders was a revelation to me.  Musicophilia is packed with compelling information and was a joy to read.

The Good Girl by Mary Kubica

The Good Girl

Author: Mary Kubica

Publisher: Harlequin

Date of Publication: July 29, 2014

Pages: 352

      The Good Girl is much more than just another "missing girl" mystery.  Mary Kubica is a first time author and hits this one out of the park.  There are four main characters.  Mia Dennett, the good girl of the title, is the younger daughter of a prominent Chicago judge.  She teaches at risk teens in an inner city school which is contrary to the expectations of her domineering father.  The second main character is Mia's mother Eve, a very conflicted socialite and stay at home mother.  The third main character is Colin Thatcher, a down on his luck loser and petty criminal who is hired to abduct Mia.  The final main character is Gabe Hoffman, the Chicago detective tasked with finding Mia and placating her distraught mother and tyrannical and demanding father.  

     The author tells the story from all four main characters perspective and from two time frames: before and after Mia's disappearance.  Chapters alternate between characters and time frames.  This sounds overly complicated and distracting, but the author succeeds in advancing the plot and developing the main characters in a very deft and entertaining way without causing confusion.  Colin was to have turned Mia over to a group planning to demand a ransom from the judge.  In a spur of the moment change of heart, Colin fears for Mia's life and decides to go into hiding with her rather than turn her over to his employers.  The story is entrancing at times, disturbing in others and, finally, completely surprising.  There is a plot twist in the Epilogue which (for me at least) was unexpected, startling and changes the entire story.

     The author manages to intertwine a discussion of the "Stockholm Syndrome" which at times could explain the relationship that develops between Mia and Colin.  There are several intriguing sub-plots including a growing connection between Eve and Gabe as each becomes more emotionally dependent on the other as the investigation drags on for weeks and weeks.  Colin's immigrant mother who is severely ill with Parkinson's plays a pivotal role in the search for Colin and Mia.  

     There are two main settings for The Good Girl.  The first is the author's native Chicago which she paints to perfection.  The second is a spooky abandoned cabin in northern Minnesota.  The author's use of setting to effect tone and ratchet up the tension is reminiscent of Stephen King's best novels.  The Good Girl has been compared to Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn but trust me, this book is much, much better.  

Book Review: Dead Wake by Erik Larson

Dead Wake

Author: Erik Larson

Publisher: Crown/Archetype

Date of Publication: March 10, 2015

Pages: 448

     The Lusitania was a British luxury liner owned by the Cunard Line, launched in 1906.  She was sunk by a German U-boat on May 7, 1915 causing the death of 1,168 passengers and crew.  Erik Larson has used his considerable research skills to bring us the story of this magnificent ship's 202nd and final voyage.

     The author uses diaries, contemporary and historical accounts as well as recorded interviews with survivors to paint a vivid picture.  The ship left New York under the cloud of a published threat from Germany  that non-military ships in the war zone were now targets for their submarines.  Most passengers took the naive attitude that the Lusitania, being one of the fastest ocean liners in history, would never fall victim to a submarine. Submarines were known to lack speed and maneuverability.  Others were genuinely worried and fatalistic.  Like the passenger list of the Titanic, many rich and famous were on board the Lusitania.  These included famed Boston bookseller Charles Lauriat, noted female architect Theodate Pope, Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt and a host of actresses, socialites and politicians.  This book is their story as well.  For instance, Lauriat was carrying a first edition Dickens as well as priceless antique pen and ink sketches to be viewed in England.

     The author does a fine job of alternating points of view between the Lusitania and her captain William Thomas Turner  and the German submarine U-20 and her captain Walter Schweiger.  Even though the outcome is known, the tension builds as the submarine patrols the waters to the west of Britain and the Lusitania churns across the North Atlantic towards her fate.

    Turner and Schweiger are two of the more compelling characters in the book.  Turner, a respected and very experienced Maritime seaman is drawn in contrast to Schweiger, the career military man with a quest for notoriety.  Turner was noted for efficiency and speed.  It was said that "None was better than Captain Turner at handling large ships."

     The story of the Lusitania is presented in the broader context of the First World War.  The author does a great job of contrasting the luxurious trappings enjoyed by the Lusitania passengers to the horrors experienced by the soldiers fighting in Europe:

"'The scene,' he (Rear Admiral Emile Guepratte on the French battleship Suffren) wrote, 'was tragically macabre: the image of desolation, the flames spared nothing.  As for our young men, a few minutes ago, so alert, so self-confident, all now lay dead on the bare deck, blackened burnt skeletons, twisted in all driections, no trace of any clothing, the fire having devoured all."

In contrast: "Aboard the Lusitania, there was quiet.  There were books, and cigars, and fine foods, afternoon tea, and the easy cadence of shipboard life: strolling the deck, chatting at the rails, doing crochet, and just sitting still in a deck chair in the sea breeze.  Now and then a ship appeared in the distance;  close at hand, whales."

     Another notable story line in Dead Wake is that of President Woodrow Wilson and his private life.  As the book opens, Wilson's first wife Ellen Axson Wilson becomes ill and succumbs to Bright's Disease.  Wilson becomes nearly incapacitated by depression and the author implies that this inertia, more than any other cause, was responsible for America's neutrality in the early stages of World War I as well as for Wilson's lack of response to the Armenian genocide.  Later, Wilson meets and begins courting widow Edith Bolling Galt who becomes his second wife.  It is interesting reading of Wilson's unescorted evening walks and drives through Washington and his pursuit of Ms. Galt.

   The author hints at the many conspiracy theories surrounding the tragedy of the Lusitania.  He never really resolves the idea that the British, by withholding intelligence data and failing to provide military escort to the Lusitania, may have allowed the attack to happen in order to outrage America and bring the United States into the war.  The author also acknowledges that there were munitions aboard the Lusitania to be delivered to the British, giving the Germans cause to sink the vessel.  It is unclear who was responsible for this violation or whether the Germans were aware that these desperately needed supplies were aboard.

     This is a very well written and interesting overview of  the sinking of the Lusitania on the hundredth anniversary of the event.  Although some compelling questions go unanswered, this is a great starting point for anyone interested in this fascinating chapter in American and world history.

Book Review: The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

The Girl on the Train

Author: Paula Hawkins

Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group

Date of Publication: January 13, 2015

Pages: 336

     This story is a really good one.  It is told from alternating perspectives of three female narrators.  The first is Rachel Watson, the titular girl on the train, who is also an alcoholic wallowing in the misery of a recent divorce from her husband Tom.  The second is Anna, Tom's new wife who was also "the other woman" in the end-game of Tom and Rachel's marriage.  The third is Megan Hipwell who lives four doors down from Tom and Anna.  Rachel's daily commute to London on the train passes her old row house, now occupied by her former husband and his new wife.  While staring at her former home she becomes fixated by Megan Hipwell.  Rachel imagines an idyllic fantasy life for Megan, even making up names for her and her husband.   Megan's husband is absent quite a bit and one day Rachel thinks she sees Megan on her deck with a paramour.

     The novel goes into high gear when Megan disappears.  Rachel thinks she knows the key to her disappearance and involves herself in the police investigation as well as intrudes on the private lives of the other characters.

     Conflict is everywhere in this story which heightens the suspense and tension.  Rachel has obvious problems with Tom and his wife and develops even more issues with Megan's husband, the police and others.  The author uses the three narrators to tell key events from different points of view, each ratcheting up the mystery and strain between the main characters.  Rachel's alcoholism poses difficulties at every turn, but her blackouts provide a convenient reason for holes in the story and gaps in the reader's knowledge. 

     Most readers will see the resolution chapters before it occurs, but the story is so well written and clever that it is an exceptionally good read.  It has been compared to Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl but I think The Girl on the Train is a much better novel.  The characters are not nearly so stereotypical, none of the characters are particularly unlikable (at least until the very end) and this novel's setting in and around London is much more interesting.  To me, this story is reminiscent of Alfred Hitchcock's classic movie "Rear Window" and that is indeed a good thing.  I have read a lot of mysteries and thrillers and this is one of the most fun ones I have read in a long time.

Book Review: A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler

A Spool of Blue Thread

Author: Anne Tyler

Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group

Date of Publication: February 10, 2015

Pages: 368 (NOOK Edition)

    There is a short list of authors whom I feel compelled to read every time they publish a new work.   Anne Tyler is on top of that list.  Her books have entertained and amazed me for many years.  All of her books are exquisitely written and cleverly plotted.  Each contains a cast of recognizable characters drawn from everyday life who are often thrown into some extraordinary circumstance.   This book is no different.  

     A Spool of Blue Thread is the story of the Whitshank family of Baltimore.  Red Whitshank is an old-school general contractor who fusses over details and lives in a rambling old home with a huge front porch which was originally built by his father.  He and his wife Abby raise four children: two daughters, a biological and an adopted son.   The two girls, Amanda and Jeannie take circuitous routes to adulthood, eventually settling into happy marriages.  Stem, the adopted son, is the steady one who eventually takes over Red's construction business.  Denny is the worrisome, prodigal son.  He disappears for long stretches, is easily alienated by his seemingly well-meaning parents and is the main source of conflict between and among family members.

      Even though much of the book focuses on developing the characters of the Whitshank children, this is really Red and Abby's story.  The book even takes a serious detour about three quarters of the way in to refocus on how Red and Abby met in North Carolina, became separated and eventually reunited in Baltimore.  All of the Whitshank back story is really preparing the reader for the main issue: how everyone reacts to Red's physical decline and Abby's dementia.  This is a poignant description of a family in crisis as it deals with the inevitability of aging.  Anne Tyler treats this issue with her usual grace and sensitivity.

     This book is filled with dexterous writing.   One night  Denny arrives home unexpectedly and the family gathers around the next morning to see how he is:

"He was wearing pain-stained khakis and a String Cheese Incident T-shirt, and his hair was very shaggy, fringing the tops of his ears.  (As a rule the men in the family were fanatic about keeping their hair short.)  He seemed healthy, though, and cheerful."

     Anne Tyler is also a master at scene creation, making settings come alive.  Here she describes the Whitshank home:

"Every ground-floor room but the kitchen had double pocket doors, and above each door was a fretwork transom for the air to circulate in the summer.  The windows were fitted so tightly that not even the fiercest winter storm could cause them to rattle.  The second-floor hall had a chamfered railing that pivoted neatly at the stairs before descending to the entrance hall.  All the floors were aged chestnut.  All the hardware was solid brass - doorknobs, cabinet knobs, even the two-pronged hooks meant to anchor the cords of the navy-blue linen window shades that were brought down from the attic every spring.  A ceiling fan with wooden blades hung in each room upstairs and down, and out on the porch there were three.  The fan above the entrance hall had a six-and-a-half-foot wingspan."

     Some reviewers have criticized this book for having "typical" and predictable Anne Tyler characters.  Others have claimed that she has recycled tired themes from her previous books (most particularly from Breathing Lessons and An Amateur Marriage).  While some of this criticism is valid, an Anne Tyler book is still a cut above the competition.  Read this for the quality of the writing and the delightful (if maybe hackneyed) characters.  You will be glad that you did.

"I Thirst"

"I Thirst"

(A Meditation on John 19:28-29)

"After this, when Jesus knew that all was now finished, he said (in order to fulfill the scripture), 'I am thirsty.'  A jar full of sour wine was standing there.  So they put a sponge full of the wine on a branch of hyssop and held it to his mouth."

    This fourth statement from the Cross is different from all of the other statements.  It is the first signal of physical distress from Jesus in the Passion Narrative.  It is only mentioned in the Gospel of John, possibly because John was positioned closest to the Cross and may have been the only apostle to hear this desperate, probably whispered plea.

     Some writers say that this statement is intentionally included in John's Gospel in order to announce fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy:  In Psalm 69, for instance, the Suffering Servant states "They gave me vinegar for my thirst."   This intentional statement from Jesus would fit John's portrait of Jesus as in total control of events. 

     Some feel this plea is inlcuded to demonstrate Jesus' human-ness - that he suffered a human, physical pain on the Cross.

     I wonder if Jesus wasn't giving us a clue as to where to find Him once His physical human being was no longer with us.

     We would find Him in people who are in need:  People who suffer an actual thirst like our brothers and sisters in Malawi whom missionaries from our church have helped build wells.

     We would find Him in people who are in need:  People who have a spiritual thirst for knowledge  of our Lord and Savior, a thirst for the Good News of our Salvation which was given to us by God through the exquisite sacrifice of his Son.

     The more I thought about "I Thirst", however, the more I was struck by Jesus' human-ness.  Growing up, my image of Jesus was from a Renaissance painting: halo, radiant garments, walking on water.  I can't help but dwell on the human Jesus.   Yes, He was and IS God, but the miracle is that He was also a very real and knowable man - a human who had feelings and experienced physical pain...   JUST LIKE YOU AND ME.

John also tells us that Jesus grew tired after a long journey...  JUST LIKE YOU AND I WOULD.

Matthew tells yus of Jesus' hunger after His forty day fast...  JUST LIKE YOU AND I WOULD BE.

Jesus wept at the tomb of Lazarus, His good friend who died before Jesus could see him one last time alive...JUST LIKE YOU OR I WOULD.

Jesus was thirsty after hours of torture and trauma, and relied on the help of strangers to help Him in his hour of need...  JUST LIKE YOU AND ME.

Jesus is God, but he was also very human...  JUST LIKE YOU AND ME.

He sacrificed his human life in a horribly painful and humiliating way...  FOR YOU AND ME.

AMEN

(This Mediation was delivered as part of a Tenebrae Service at Fist Presbyterian Church, Lynchburg, Virginia on Good Friday, April 3, 2015)

Book Review: Disgrace by J. M. Coetzee

Disgrace

Author: J. M. Coetzee

Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group

Date of Publication: October 31. 2000

Pages: 220 (Trade Paperback Edition)

       Disgrace diminishes the disgraced.  J. M. Coetzee hammers this theme home in this brilliant study of a despicable college professor who loses his job after his tawdry affair with one of his students comes to light.  Twice divorced, Professor David Lurie retreats to the South African countryside to stay with his daughter during the aftermath of his fall from grace.  What happens during this sojourn is pure karma.  Does the professor get what he deserves or has the world gone mad?  

     Every word (including the diminutive "Disgrace" on the cover) is pitch perfect.  The author has masterfully created a totally unlikeable main character.  It is impossible, really, to like or feel sorry for David Lurie.  His arrogance is displayed often and early:

 "He continues to teach because it provides him with a livelihood;  also because it teaches him humility, brings it home to him who he is in the world.  The irony does not escape him: that the one who comes to teach learns the keenest of lessons, while those who come to learn learn nothing."

Later, even as he accepts humble jobs cleaning in a veterinary clinic he still manages to irritate the reader through his constant use and abuse of vulnerable women.    As evil befalls both him and those around him you feel he is reaping what he has sown. 

     This is a book about power and the abuse of power.  Professor Lurie abuses the trust placed in him by the University and the parents who send their children for education. The consequences of his actions on some levels seem unfair, in that the collateral damage affects innocents around the shameful academic.

     This book succeeds on many levels.  First, it is an expertly crafted work of literature.  The settings and tone are expertly conveyed.  It also succeeds as an in-depth character study, mainly of Professor Lurie.  The reader is repelled by this man's constant rationalization of his aberrant behaviors but, at the same time, gains tremendous insight into his psyche and lack of moral integrity.  This book was not a "fun" read, but a very thought provoking and intense one.  

Book Review: The Book of Strange New Things by Michel Faber

The Book of Strange New Things

Author: Michel Faber

Publisher: Crown Publishing Group

Date of Publication: October 28, 2014

Pages: 500 (Hardcover Edition)

     This book is itself somewhat of a strange new thing.  The main character, Peter Leigh, is an Englishman, a recovered alcoholic, drug addict and petty criminal.  He reinvented himself as  a Christian minister after being befriended by a nurse during a convalescence.  This nurse becomes his wife and partner in his ministry until he is selected to go alone to another planet to spread the Word of Jesus to aliens on a recently colonized planet called Oasis.  The colonization project is run by a nebulous company identified only as USIC

     It takes a while for Peter to become acclimated to his new planet and even longer to meet and begin his work with his new parishioners.  The author does a masterful job of describing this new world, including details of agriculture, climate, topography and the native inhabitants, called "Oasans" by Peter.  Peter is able to communicate with his wife, Bea, via an inter-stellar e-mail.  Just as Peter's ministry begins to flourish, troubles at home strain his relationship with Bea.  As he desperately tries to reconcile his missionary success with his personal failures, suspicion regarding the motives of USIC muddy the waters.  

     One can't help but be reminded of Mary Doria Russel's The Sparrow.  In The Sparrow the missionary is a Jesuit priest and the theology espoused is most definitely Ignatian.  In The Books of Strange New Things Peter's denomination is never characterized other than "Christian" and the religious concerns bounce around from issues of faith, suffering, redemption and salvation and even predestination.  There is not a particular theology presented, although the Bible is thoroughly explored as Peter translates Jesus' parables and teachings (Oasans prefer the New Testament).   

     The Book of Strange New Things is a marvelous exploration into faith and sharing.  It raises serious issues of being so concerned with others that you lose track of what's going on to those right next to you and trying to find that balance of saving the world but being true to your own relationships. 

Book Review: Broken Monsters by Lauren Beukes

Broken Monsters

Author: Lauren Beukes

Publisher: Little, Brown and Company

Date of Publication: September 16, 2014

Pages: 448

     If Thomas Harris and William Peter Blatty got together and wrote a book, it would be Lauren Beukes' Broken Monsters.  Most of this well-paced thriller is the story of a particularly twisted serial killer preying on diverse victims in Detroit.  The ending changes the tone of the book into a hallucinogenic, paranormal freak show.  

     Set in contemporary Detroit, Detective Gabriella Versado investigates a series of horrific murders involving seemingly arbitrary victims.  The crime scenes are particularly gruesome because the killer engages in post-mortem mutilation of the bodies.  Versado searches for connections or similarities in the victims while also single parenting her teenage daughter Layla.  Distracted on both the professional and domestic fronts, the detective can't seem to get a handle on either role.  Layla's story is one of an unsupervised teen who, left to her own devices, finds all kinds of trouble on her own while trolling internet chat sites.

     The author is a native of South Africa but nonetheless paints a terrific portrait of a decaying and troubled American city.  The violence is disturbing but so is the despair and gloom of an abandoned urban landscape.  The author seems to be making a statement that the blighted environment played a major role in the development of this particularly sick criminal.  There is an eventual link to the art scene in Detroit and the author includes interesting depictions of contemporary urban art and culture.  

   
     Broken Monsters also makes a valid statement regarding the media and its ability to be part of the story instead of a detached, unbiased information source.  One of the main characters is an attention seeking video blogger who feeds into the killer's need for publicity which incites the criminal and hinders the police investigation.

     This author's writing is very vivid and Broken Monsters is fast-paced, entertaining and thought provoking.  It's not for everybody, however, as the crime scene descriptions leave little to the imagination and are horrific.  The strengths of the book are the depictions of urban chaos and the Detroit art scene and the overall quality of the writing.  Layla's story is an interesting diversion and a cautionary tale for parents of teens.  The ending  was for me, well, weird, but did wrap up all of the subplots into a satisfying conclusion.  Broken Monsters is a very good contemporary crime novel and is well worth the effort to read.  

Book Review: The End of Power by Moises Naim

The End of Power

Author: Moises Naim

Publisher: Basic Books

Date of Publication: March 5, 2013

Pages: 320

     This book is the first selection in Mark Zuckerberg's 2015 "Year of Books" Challenge.  It is a thought provoking and intriguing read.  The author has served as editor-in-chief of "Foreign Policy," trade minister for Venezuela and as executive director of the World Bank.  He has a grasp of how things work, or, as is more likely these days, how they don't work.

    The End of Power is like a Malcolm Gladwell book on steroids.  Naim takes a contrarian view of current power structures and backs this view up with charts, data and informed opinion.  The author feels that it is urgent for us to change the way we think and talk about power.

     He spends a great deal of time explaining what he calls the "More, Mobility and Mentality" revolution going on world wide.  First, there is more of everything: more people, more interest groups, more factions and more wealth.  Everyone is also more mobile.  He cites immigration statistics for multiple peoples and it does appear that populations are on the move at an unprecedented rate.  This is rapidly changing the demographics of communities and entire nations.   There is also an over-all more educated international populace which is acutely aware of trends, lifestyles and discrepancies.  All of this leads to more "players" in every power dynamic, be it the business world, education, politics or any other social system.  We live in a world where small start-up companies can challenge and usurp industry leaders in a very short time.  An educated and enraged group, spurred on by such recent technology such as social media,  can topple governments in the "Arab Spring."  Fraction groups such as the Tea Party can control an established political party.  This creates an atmosphere where power dissipates and no one has control.  Naim uses the term "vetocracy" to describe the gridlock in the United States and other nations where nothing gets done because power is so dissipated.

     The author does propose some solutions to this seeming conundrum of government paralysis.  The main way to restore order, he says, it to restore trust in government and our leaders.  He concludes:

"Restoring trust, reinventing political parties, finding new ways in which average citizens can meaningfully participate in the political process, creating new mechanisms of effective governance, limiting the worst impacts of checks and balances while averting  excessive concentrations of unaccountable power, and enhancing the capacity of nation-states to work together should be the central political goals of our time."

The End of Power is a challenging and frightening book.  It helps the reader understand some of the chaos we now live in and, by proposing some reasonable solutions gives at least some hope that we may arrive at a compromise between totalitarian control and anarchy.