a man of honor book review

A Man Of Honor – book review

A Man Of Honor – The Autobiography of Joseph Bonanno, Simon and Schuster, 1983

I picked this book up shortly after its publication because of its title. I am not normally attracted to crime or mob stories. In fact, this and In Cold Blood are the only ones in my library. This was a time in my life when I was seriously exploring the Christian faith, and while I had not yet bought in to all its moral precepts, I was curious to see how a mafia boss could define himself as a “man of honor.”

I expected to see narcissism, whitewashing, and rationalizations, and there certainly was plenty of that. The reviews of the book on Amazon reflect that many others saw through his attempts at self justification as well. But that still didn’t explain the mindset that allowed a criminal life like his to appear to exist with such a clear conscience. He doesn’t come across as a sadist or a sociopath, although he had to have worked with many who were. He was unusual not only in that he grew from an immigrant soldier in the mafia into one of the top positions, but that he was able to survive there long enough to actually retire. That is an achievement matched by few. While he probably wasn’t a giant intellect, he obviously wasn’t dumb either.

Believing that one’s self is a person of honor implies that one lives in conformance to a code that he or she considers honorable.  In Bonanno’s case, that code was a simple one with two basic components. The first is that family is the only source of value in life. Family comes first and last and in between. Any question about value or loyalty must be settled according to its impact on the family. Secondly, any action is justifiable in the defense or expansion of the family, including violence. The mafia, of course, was his family. He gave it total commitment and once he became its head, he expected the same from his underlings. The consideration that other families or individuals may have an equal right to any particular pleasure or resource was beyond his capacity to compute. The world began and ended with his family. Nothing else mattered.

He gave the example of a member of his family having a bakery in the neighborhood when a competing bakery opens nearby. It is the obligation of the family head to take steps to shut down the competitor or to exact such price as necessary to prevent damage to the family bakery. That is the only “honorable” thing to do. I found this to be fascinating logic. Or lack of logic.

Actually, it is the oldest logic on the planet. Bonanno was the ultimate tribalist. From native Americans, to Bedouin nomads, to Celtic clans, tribal loyalties have defined us for as long as mankind has existed. Even now, when we thought we had become too sophisticated and civilized for that, our political and cultural leaders are doing their best to drag us back into the stone ages of group hatred; tribalism.  Joseph Bonanno should have been an anachronism. Instead, it looks like he may have been ahead of his time; a harbinger of things to come.

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A Man of Honor by Barbara Taylor Bradford – a Review

Description: Opening five years before the start of A Woman of Substance, A Man of Honor begins with 13-year-old Blackie O’Neill facing an uncertain future in rural County Kerry. Orphaned and alone, he has just buried his sister, Bronagh, and must leave his home to set sail for England, in search of a better life with his mother’s brother in Leeds. There, he learns his trade as a navvy, amid the grand buildings and engineering triumphs of one of England’s most prosperous cities, and starts to dream of greater things… And then, high on the Yorkshire moors, in the mists of a winter morning he meets a kitchen maid called Emma Harte.

In A Man of Honor, the true Blackie O’Neill is revealed. For the first time, readers discover his story: his tumultuous life, the obstacles facing him, the desire he has to throw off the impotence of poverty and move up in the world. Like his friend Emma, he is ambitious, driven, disciplined, and determined to make it to the top. And like Emma Harte, he is an unforgettable character for the millions who loved the book.

A Man of Honor by Barbara Taylor Bradford is a prequel novel from the A Woman of Substance .  It’s been a long time since I read Bradford’s fantastic A Woman of Substance (Harte Family) Saga (began in 1979), which at that time was my favorite series, spending time with Emma Harte, her successful career, loves and her children, who continued the saga.  I looked forward to this prequel, especially since it was focuses on Blackie O’Neill, whom we loved in the earlier books, this story is approximately 5 years prior the start of A Woman of Substance .   A Man of Honor was a very good story, and brought back many memories about the saga.

We meet 13 year old Blackie, who is alone, having recently lost his sister, living in County Kerry, with his cousins. Blackie is a strapping young boy, who has no qualms working hard to learn his trade and build a better life.  He sets sail for England, to stay and work with his Uncle Patrick, who is a builder. Blackie begins to learn his trade as a navvy, and with his ambitions, dreams and determination to build, he becomes very skilled at his creations, which become popular among the wealthy.

For those of us who have read the entire Harte Family Saga, we do get glimpses of others we have met before; such as the wealthy Lord Lassiter, who hires Blackie for major improvements to his properties, which starts Blackie on his way to reaching his dreams.  We also learn more about Lassiter and Adrian, and their loves.  Of course, as we get closer to the end, Blackie will finally meet a young maid, Emma Harte, and soon a strong bond of friendship begins.

A Man of Honor was a perfect interesting and fun prequel that was very well written by Barbara Taylor Bradford .  Blackie was a fantastic hero, who made friends easily, as well as a workaholic that will change his life to reach his high expectations.  A Man a Honor can be read as a standalone, however it works so much better if you have read all of the Harte Family Saga .

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher

12 thoughts on “ A Man of Honor by Barbara Taylor Bradford – a Review ”

Wonderful review, Barb. I loved the Emma Harte series. I did not know about this prequel. Thanks.

Terrific review, Barb. I too was a big fan of Emma Harte and Blackie O’Neill. So many wonderful memories of this series.

Thanks for another wonderful review.

Great review, Barb. Looks like the prequel is a great addition. Thanks.

Great review, thanks Barb

great review, barb. sounds awesome. thanks.

Looks great, thanks Barb

Thanks for the great review.

Great review, Barb. Blackie was one of my favorites in the Emma Harte series.

Very nice review thanks Barb.

Terrific review Barb, thanks.

Fantastic review,thanks Barb.

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Book Reviews

'honor' is a searing meditation on the meaning of dignity in a dehumanizing world.

Sharmila Mukherjee

Thrity Umrigar's important new novel Honor isn't an easy read.

From depictions of casual misogyny to distressing scenes of public shaming, mistreatment and torture, the novel shows the terrifying social forces that strip vulnerable people of dignity and render them animal-like. It's a searing meditation on the meaning of dignity in a dehumanizing world.

Honor is set in today's India. This isn't the globalized India of news or the India of IT excellence and an ambitious space mission. It's the unseemly side of the country, blighted by cultural conservatism, poverty, sectarian violence, caste hierarchies and misogyny.

Umrigar, an English professor at Case Western Reserve University, has set several of her past novels in this tumultuous India, investigating fraught social issues such as caste and class divides, the lure of fundamentalism and culture clash. Her critically acclaimed novel The Space Between Us told with impeccable delicacy a story of friendship between two women of different backgrounds. Honor adds an element that the author has not addressed before: extreme violence.

Umrigar writes not only as an elegant storyteller but as a sharp-eyed reporter, no doubt informed by her experience as a former journalist. Her reportorial style takes us deep into the lives and minds of vividly realized characters, showing us their gestural quirks, geniality and, at times, horrific cruelty. If you are familiar with the country, the novel's depiction of Indian manners will seem startlingly true-to-life.

Umrigar's reportorial style is particularly apt because her central character, Smita Agarwal, is a journalist. Born in India, Smita moved to the U.S. with her family when she was a teen. Twenty years later, she arrives in Mumbai to help her friend, a fellow journalist, Shannon Carpenter, recover from a serious injury. In truth, Shannon wants her to cover an assignment for her: a grisly crime in a village named Birwad on the Maharashtra-Gujarat border.

Meena, a Hindu woman, and Abdul, a Muslim man, fell in love and married in defiance of the social proscription against interfaith marriage. Infuriated by the perceived dishonor she has caused to the family, Meena's brothers set them on fire in their home. Abdul has died; but Meena, pregnant at the time, survives, although severely disabled. She has filed a lawsuit against her brothers with the help of a lawyer activist, Anjali, and is awaiting the court's verdict. The story confirms everything Smita dislikes about India: its social backwardness and lack of respect for civil liberty. Still, she agrees to step in and makes the journey to the country's dark reaches. But by now it is clear to the reader that Smita is carrying an emotional baggage of her own surrounding the circumstances of her family's departure for the U.S.

As much as Honor is about India's humanitarian crisis, it is also about a transformative journey. We witness Smita's emotional and spiritual blossoming in the process of writing.

Honor leads us from the dirty, crowded but cosmopolitan Mumbai into the choking, retrograde world of Birwad, exposing India's entrenched prejudices and twisted patriarchal values. Nowhere is this more clearly shown than in the opinion of a villager Smita interviews. Commenting on Meena's brothers, he says: "Killing that Muslim dog? Fine. But they should not have touched that girl. No, he should have just dragged her back home and kept her locked up for the cooking-cleaning." Umrigar unsparingly reveals the social conditioning that enables persecution.

To inhabit Birwad and its surrounds is to be enclosed in a bell jar of violence, fire and smoke. Embodying the destructive forces of the region is Rupal, the chief of the neighboring village of Vithalgaon, who aided Meena's brothers in their heinous act. In this novel, there's no whodunit-style mystery, no genius villain lurking to be caught. The horror is how unabashedly Rupal gloats over the crime as a justified act of honor.

Yet the novel is not without relief from its gruesome portrayal of depravity. Meena's reminiscence of her love for Abdul, told in the first person, has a sweet tenderness. Once Smita and Meena talk, the asymmetrical structure of the interview begins to dissolve; the space between them closes up.

Nightmarish violence explodes once the court verdict comes out. The terrible events that ensue allow Umrigar to uncover the meaning of honor: not in grand acts of heroism but in small gestures of dignity and care.

Honor calls to mind Megha Majumdar's novel A Burning . Both novels emerge from the same world of rot: India's deep seated hatred, poverty, illiteracy and corruption. Both examine our capacity for moral behavior in the face of extreme circumstances. But Umrigar's vision is more optimistic than Majumdar's.

By the end of the novel Smita not only finds companionship, purpose and the ability to confront her trauma but she also learns the value of selflessness. Smita's friendship and romance with a man named Mohan is crucial in opening her to the Eastern philosophical tradition based on sacrifice. Umrigar suggests that the solution to India's social ills lies in this philosophical tradition rather than in Western tenets of individualism.

Writing about a social problem in a developing country is a notoriously difficult task. For one thing, it can easily become poverty porn, written for the perverse entertainment of privileged Western readers. The story of a transformative journey of a privileged character at the expense of disadvantaged subjects may also sound exploitative. Then there's the question: What should one do in response to a social crisis?

Umrigar tackles some of these challenges well. Yet she also lapses into sentimental didacticism that sounds inauthentic. The novel's conclusion is a crowd pleasing melodrama that ticks all the correct boxes. To some extent it follows inevitably from the novel's premise. But for all its structural weakness, the earnestness of Umrigar's intention is unquestionable: She convinces us that to read is to comprehend and to comprehend is to act.

Sharmila Mukherjee's writing has been published or is forthcoming in The Seattle Times, The Los Angeles Review of Books, The Star Tribune and the Washington Post. She holds a PhD in English from the University of Washington.

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"A Man of Honor" by Joseph Bonanno

This is a biography of a person who was born and raised in a family highly connected to the mafia. This book was very good and I learned a lot about Joseph Bonanno. It discusses Joseph Bonanno, his mafia family, and how Bonanno went up the ranks to become a leader of the mafia family. This book shows what goes through a person’s mind when committing crimes and how people can justify their violent actions.  One interesting factor about the book is after its publication,  members of the mafia identified in the book were arrested from RICO law. RICO stands for Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. RICO law connects everyone a person talked about to the mafia and this book was used as direct evidence for prosecution under the RICO law. Bonanno does not think that the mafia will go on in the U.S., because the U.S. does not allow the business they had in Italy.

This book shows you how Joseph Bonanno was  introduced to organized crime and how he handled being in the mafia. This book describes Bonanno growing up in a poor immigrant neighborhood in Brooklyn, NY in the early 1900’s, and how the surroundings changed around him. Bonanno had a hard life because both of his parents died while he was young. He had to go to his uncle, which was not the best role model for him. His uncle, who worked in the mafia, introduced Bonanno to organized crime. This would later lead Bonanno to commit many crimes. Bonanno even was in a mafia war with Al Capone and the Capone mafia family!

  This book is a great example of how surroundings can change your relationship with the law. Most people will never know how it is to be a criminal. For instance, Bonanno watched as some of his friends and family members were injured or killed by rival families. This book allows people to see how Bonanno was raised, how he became such a big criminal, and how he became such a big part of the problem of organized crime in America. But in Bonanno’s eyes, he was carrying on a tradition and this is what he wanted to do and the right thing to do. He was raised not knowing right from wrong. Every day of his life he thought he was doing the right things.

The book shows what’s going through Bonanno’s mind when he does the crimes. His first real interaction with a mafia boss was when a person wanted to kill him. He was scared like anyone else would be. A man who was mad at Bonanno, because Bonanno was dating his daughter, threatened him and he felt scared for his life. This is when he started carrying around a gun with him at all times. Even though it was a felony to carry an illegal firearm, he did not care. This showed how Bonanno did not care about, or even think twice about violating the law. This was the start of Bonanno falling into organized crime.

In conclusion, the book “A Man of Honor” by Joseph Bonanno was a good book that would also make a great movie because it told tales of the actual mafia. It told us what Bonanno did, what he knew as common sense, and what was going on in his mind. If you are reading this without knowing Bonanno, you may think he is crazy and he never cared about anyone. This is not true because he stopped himself from doing things because of his wife and kids. This is surprising, but he also never killed or hurt a woman or a child. This is what I think would be the human part of him stopping him from doing something he would regret for the rest of his life. Bonanno was lucky because he never had to go to prison. He had been arrested, but not convicted and sent to prison. Bonanno did not know most of the things he was doing were wrong, and if he knew, he would most likely not have done them. The book had engaging storytelling, and it told the right amount of detail to get a good image in your mind to understand Bonanno’s life. If you're looking for a book to read and are interested in the history of organized crime, “A Man of Honor” is the book for you!

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Submitting a book for review, write the editor, you are here:, a man of honor.

• About the Book

The prequel to Barbara Taylor Bradford's New York Times bestselling and dazzling saga, A WOMAN OF SUBSTANCE.

Opening five years before the start of A WOMAN OF SUBSTANCE, A MAN OF HONOR begins with 13-year-old Blackie O’Neill facing an uncertain future in rural County Kerry. Orphaned and alone, he has just buried his sister, Bronagh, and must leave his home to set sail for England, in search of a better life with his mother’s brother in Leeds. There, he learns his trade as a navvy, amid the grand buildings and engineering triumphs of one of England’s most prosperous cities, and starts to dream of greater things. And then, high on the Yorkshire moors, in the mists of a winter morning he meets a kitchen maid called Emma Harte.

In A MAN OF HONOR, the true Blackie O'Neill is revealed. For the first time, readers discover his story: his tumultuous life, the obstacles facing him, the desire he has to throw off the impotence of poverty and move up in the world. Like his friend Emma, he is ambitious, driven, disciplined and determined to make it to the top. And like Emma Harte, he is an unforgettable character for the millions who loved the book.

A Man of Honor by Barbara Taylor Bradford

• Publication Date: October 25, 2022
• Genres: Fiction , Historical Fiction
• Mass Market Paperback: 464 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks
• ISBN-10: 1250850800
• ISBN-13: 9781250850805

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What's Better Than Books?

Book Reviews, Author Interviews, Guest Posts, Ratings, and More!

#BookReview Honor by Thrity Umrigar @ThrityUmrigar @AlgonquinBooks @ThomasAllenLTD #Honor #ThrityUmrigar

In this riveting and immersive novel, bestselling author Thrity Umrigar tells the story of two couples and the sometimes dangerous and heartbreaking challenges of love across a cultural divide.

Indian American journalist Smita has returned to India to cover a story, but reluctantly: long ago she and her family left the country with no intention of ever coming back. As she follows the case of Meena—a Hindu woman attacked by members of her own village and her own family for marrying a Muslim man—Smita comes face to face with a society where tradition carries more weight than one’s own heart, and a story that threatens to unearth the painful secrets of Smita’s own past. While Meena’s fate hangs in the balance, Smita tries in every way she can to right the scales. She also finds herself increasingly drawn to Mohan, an Indian man she meets while on assignment. But the dual love stories of Honor are as different as the cultures of Meena and Smita themselves: Smita realizes she has the freedom to enter into a casual affair, knowing she can decide later how much it means to her.

In this tender and evocative novel about love, hope, familial devotion, betrayal, and sacrifice, Thrity Umrigar shows us two courageous women trying to navigate how to be true to their homelands and themselves at the same time.

Tragic, thought-provoking, and affecting!

Honor is a powerful, riveting, emotionally-charged novel that sweeps you away to present-day India and into the lives of a handful of people, including Smita Agarwal, an Indian American journalist who, after being shamed as a child and adamant she would never set foot in India ever again, finds herself travelling back to the country of her youth to cover the harrowing story of Meena Mustafa, a young Hindu girl who, after falling for and marrying a man of Muslim faith, endures horrific familial violence, shoulders extreme grief, and sacrifices everything she has all in the name of “Honor.”

The prose is lyrical and expressive. The characters, including all the supporting characters, are vulnerable, conflicted, and scarred. And the plot is a profoundly moving tale of life, loss, shame, misogyny, ostracism, class division, poverty, desperation, corruption, suffering, courage, friendship, and forbidden love.

Overall,  Honor  will make you think, it will break your heart, and it will resonate with you long after the final page. It’s a powerful, hopeful, enthralling tale by Umrigar that uses exquisite character development to weave a transformative exploration with a beautiful, bittersweet story of female friendship all steeped in an abundance of violence and pain.

This book is available now. 

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

Thank you to Thomas Allen & Son for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

About Thrity Umrigar

Thrity Umrigar is the bestselling author of eight novels, including The Space Between Us, which was a finalist for the PEN/Beyond Margins Award, as well as a memoir and three picture books. Her books have been translated into several languages and published in more than fifteen countries. She is the winner of a Lambda Literary Award and a Seth Rosenberg Award and is Distinguished Professor of English at Case Western Reserve University. A recipient of the Nieman Fellowship to Harvard, she has contributed to the Boston Globe , the Washington Post, the New York Times and Huffington Post.

Photo courtesy of algonquin.com.

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Taylor Swift’s “The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived” Is A Venomous Breakup Song

The singer gifts us another powerful bridge to scream/sing/cry to.

Shortly after announcing The Tortured Poets Department as her next original album, Taylor Swift opened up to an Eras Tour crowd in Melbourne, Australia, about what the project meant to her. “More than any of my albums that I’ve ever made — I needed to make it,” she said in February, via NME . “It was really a lifeline for me. Just the things I was going through and the things I was writing about. ... I never had an album where I needed songwriting more than I needed it on Tortured Poets .”

The comments fueled fan theories that this would be a confessional breakup album , but if people were expecting a melancholic ode to a relationship lost, they’ll be surprised by the sharp, biting ire of at least one song.

Here are “The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived” lyrics, explained.

A Taylor Swift Bridge For The Ages

The song is set after a relationship ends, in which the narrator is now doubting everything. “Was any of it true? Gazing at me starry-eyed in your Jehovah’s Witness suit, who the f*ck was that guy?”

Swift sings about a guy who showed her off, but didn’t treat her right in private. She also makes multiple references to drug use, and wonders, “I just want to know if rusting my sparkling summer was the goal.”

But then there’s the bridge — and it might go down as one of Swift’s best ever. “Were you sent by someone who wanted me dead? Did you sleep with a gun underneath our bed?” she asks as the music climbs, before implying that the ex was living a lie the entire time. “Were you writing a book? Were you a sleeper cell spy? In 50 years, will all this be declassified?”

Swift has written some devastating breakup bridges, but few have come close to this level of venom. It’s one thing to imply someone is a poor partner. It’s another thing entirely to paint them as a malevolent force. “You deserve prison but you won’t get time,” she sings.

But... Who Is The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived?

As always, Swifties can only speculate as to who this song is about — and even then, not every detail is likely autobiographical.

The line about Swift’s “sparkling summer” being rusted seems to hint at a relationship that fell apart during the warmest time of year. Swift and Joe Alwyn’s breakup was announced in April, while her reportedly “always casual” connection with The 1975’s Matty Healy cooled off by June, per People .

It’s worth noting that Swift’s line, “I would have died for your sins,” is somewhat reminiscent of “I would die for you in secret” from “ Peace ,” which Swift previously told Rolling Stone was inspired by her personal life.

That song, too, navigated the gap between a relationship’s public facade and private challenges. That isn’t to say the tracks are connected — they have very different emotional contexts — but if nothing else, it seems Swift has been thinking about these themes for a while.

“The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived” Lyrics

Read the song’s full lyrics below.

Was any of it true?

Gazing at me starry-eyed

In your Jehovah's Witness suit

Who the f*ck was that guy?

You tried to buy some pills

From a friend of friends of mine

They just ghosted you

Now you know what it feels like

And I don’t even want you back, I just want to know

If rusting my sparkling summer was the goal

And I don’t miss what we had, but could someone give

A message to the smallest man who ever lived?

You hung me on your wall

Stabbed me with your push pins

In public, showed me off

Then sank in stoned oblivion

‘Cause once your queen had come

You’d treat her like an also-ran

You didn't measure up

In any measure of a man

Were you sent by someone who wanted me dead?

Did you sleep with a gun underneath our bed?

Were you writing a book? Were you a sleeper cell spy?

In 50 years will all this be declassified?

And you'll confess why you did it, and I'll say, “Good riddance”

‘Cause it wasn't sexy once it wasn't forbidden

I would've died for your sins, instead I just died inside

And you deserve prison, but you won't get time

You'll slide into inboxes and slip through the bars

You crashed my party and your rental car

You said normal girls were “boring”

But you were gone by the morning

You kicked out the stage lights, but you're still performing

And in plain sight you hid, but you are what you did

And I'll forget you, but I'll never forgive

The smallest man who ever lived

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Book Review: ‘Nothing But the Bones’ is a compelling noir novel at a breakneck pace

This image released by St. Martin’s Publishing Group shows “Nothing But the Bones” by Brian Panowich. (St. Martin’s Publishing Group via AP)

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Nelson “Nails” McKenna isn’t very bright, stumbles over his words and often says what he’s thinking without realizing it.

We first meet him as a boy reading a superhero comic on the banks of a river in his backcountry hometown in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Georgia. There, a bully picks on him and then does the same to a pretty girl Nails secretly fancies. Enraged, Nails, ignorant of his own strength, gives the bully a fatal beating.

Nails’ friend Clayton Burroughs, who watches it happen, doesn’t call the police. Instead, he calls his brutal father, Gareth, who runs the rackets on Bull Mountain, to cover it up.

So begins “Nothing But the Bones,” a prequel to the first three Southern noir novels in Brian Panowich’s critically acclaimed Bull Mountain series.

After the killing, the story skips forward nine years and finds history repeating itself. Nails, now working as an enforcer for Gareth, is drinking apple juice in a seedy bar when he sees a punk mistreating a young woman. Moments later, the punk lies dead on the barroom floor.

There are too many witnesses for Gareth to fix things this time. Instead, he hands Nails a bag of cash, orders him to head south, and gives him a phone number to call when he gets to Jacksonville, Florida. As Nails speeds away, he discovers the young woman, a fellow outcast who calls herself Dallas, hiding in the backseat. She persuades a reluctant Nails to take her with him, and as they drive on, an unlikely love story emerges. As readers learn Dallas’s backstory, it becomes clear that they need each other.

When Clayton hears what’s happened, he’s knows that his father, who avoids legal entanglements at all costs, hasn’t sent Nails away for a new start. Nails is driving to his death. So, in defiance of his father, Clayton heads for Jacksonville to save his friend. Their friendship may remind readers of George Milton and Lennie Small in John Steinbeck’s 1937 novella, “Of Mice and Men” — although Nails isn’t as limited as Lennie.

The compelling tale, its tone alternately brutal and tender, unfolds at a breakneck pace. The character development is superb, the settings are vivid, and the prose is as tight as a noose. The plot is full of twists. Among them is a startling revelation about Dallas’s identity, introducing a sensitive subject that Panowich handles with understanding and grace.

Bruce DeSilva, winner of the Mystery Writers of America’s Edgar Award, is the author of the Mulligan crime novels including “The Dread Line.”

AP book reviews: https://apnews.com/hub/book-reviews

By the Book

Letter by Letter, Steve Gleason Typed His Memoir With His Eyes

The former N.F.L. player has been living with A.L.S. for more than a decade. Sharing “the most lacerating and vulnerable times” in “A Life Impossible” was worth the physical and emotional toll, he says.

Credit... Rebecca Clarke

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Describe your ideal reading experience (when, where, what, how).

I have always loved to read, and I read nearly anywhere. Journalists used to get a kick out of the fact that in the midst of the chaotic joy of the [New Orleans] Saints locker room, I would lie on the floor reading books.

These days, while I’m not so good at flipping pages, I still tear through books. I listen on Audible, or read on Kindle, and for the books I’d like to pass on, I buy the book for the shelves in our house.

The ideal reading experience? For me, there is nothing more glorious than sitting outside under the shade of an oak tree with my wife, Michel, or our 12-year-old son, Rivers, listening on Audible or hearing them read the hard copy. (Rivers and I just finished the young readers adaptation of “The Boys in the Boat,” by Daniel James Brown.) Our 5-year-old daughter, Gray, is just learning to read, so I look forward to continuing this tradition in nature, my sanctuary, for many years.

What book do you turn to during hard times?

Viktor Frankl’s “Man’s Search for Meaning.” There were a couple years, as I was losing the ability to move, talk and breathe, that I felt so lonely, ashamed and weary that I was ready to give up and die. His words helped me choose life.

What did it take to write a nearly 300-page book?

In a word … everything. I type with my eyes, letter by letter, so to write this, it took a physical toll to write for several hours each day for two years. It took patience and discipline. People often talk about “writer’s block,” but I think I experienced something of the opposite thousands of times over the past couple years. Ordinary writers may have a wonderful idea to get on the page, then they quickly write it down. But I type so slowly that the wonderful idea that was so vivid and clear eventually slipped into the fog as I trudged and typed.

It also took an emotional toll. To relive the most lacerating and vulnerable times of my life, then to share those experiences in a raw, truthful human way, rather than a heroic way, took an extraordinary amount of trust. It’s clear to me that sharing our shortcomings and weaknesses with each other is our greatest strength. Our salvation.

Why do you describe yourself as afraid to finish it?

There were multiple reasons. Unlike most authors, I’m not able to quickly scroll through a chapter to revise or edit. I have bragged on social media, “I get more done in one day than most people get done in 15 minutes!” So, during the end of the writing process, there was fear that I would lose the input I needed to tell our story fully and truthfully.

Michel and I took some enormous risks in openly and transparently sharing our journey as a couple enduring the dark traumas of life with A.L.S. When you read the searing experience that we have been through, you may feel kind of like you’re overhearing conversations that you shouldn’t be hearing. But these difficult, truthful and compassionate conversations were our redemption, and our healing. I also took some personal risks in sharing my fairly unconventional views on religion and spirituality.

I think the most frightening aspect may be that once published, my life story would become solid, static and fixed. That is so crazy to me, because, as a lifelong explorer, my perspectives, philosophical outlooks, and beliefs are dynamic and fluid.

Galleys for your book opened with a quote from Shakespeare, “Tears water our growth.” How did you come across it? Why that quote?

I know this will come as a shock, but not everything I read on the internet is true! While this quote was attributed to Shakespeare, we did a little digging and there is no record of him ever saying or writing this, even though it’s constantly attributed to him. Although, in “As You Like It,” he does write: “Sweet are the uses of adversity. …” [The quote is now attributed to Author Unknown.]

What kind of reader were you as a child? Do any childhood books and authors stick with you?

My mom was a language arts teacher, so she would read to me nearly every night and I was a voracious reader growing up. The book that stands out from my youth is “Ender’s Game,” a novel by Orson Scott Card. In sixth grade I found this book in the Bookmobile, a big yellow van that I remember with great nostalgia. I can’t say exactly why, but I also read it a couple years after I was diagnosed with A.L.S.

I sense that in both my adolescence and the crazy unknowns of life where I was losing the ability to move, talk and breathe, I resonated with two themes in “Ender’s Game” — feeling isolation, and working to discover my own identity.

I’m reminded of a profound truth in a quote from Ender: “In the moment when I truly understand my enemy, understand him well enough to defeat him, then in that very moment I also love him.” In embracing this paradox, I find strength and compassion in the midst of adversity.

What book has had the greatest impact on you?

Wow, this is an impossible question to answer, but I enjoy dancing with the impossible. It would be “21 Lessons for the 21st Century ,” by Yuval Noah Harari . I read this in early 2019, my ninth season with A.L.S. In “21 Lessons,” Harari explores the profound challenges facing humanity, including technological disruption, political polarization and existential risks. With such rapid change, life will become ever more chaotic.

Harari mentions multiple times that the realest thing in the world is suffering. He goes on to say that suffering is a product of patterns in our own minds, and offers a tool that has helped him alleviate suffering and be more resilient — meditation. I now train my mind in meditation for two to three hours a day. I didn’t realize it then, but as I started meditation, I was embarking on a practice of a lifetime.

What’s the last great book you read?

When I was diagnosed, one of the first questions I asked in a journal entry was, “Can I discover peace of mind, even if this disease destroys my body?” That inquiry has been a guiding light for me the past 13 years. “The Good Life: Lessons From the World’s Longest Scientific Study of Happiness,” by Robert Waldinger and Marc Schulz, has real-life stories I could relate to, providing insights which have helped illuminate the path for me to live longer, and be grateful and content.

The last book that made you cry?

“I Wish for You,” by David Wax and illustrated by Brett Blumenthal. During spring break, as our daughter nestled beside me in bed, our caregiver, Jenni, read from the book. It lists about a dozen of the most important character traits and values that I aspire to embody and instill in our kids. Witnessing Gray following along with her tiny finger, I was overwhelmed by the miraculousness of the moment. Despite being 10 years past my expiration date, here I was, sharing a cherished reading experience.

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How Burnout Became Normal — and How to Push Back Against It

• Kandi Wiens

Seven strategies to get back to a healthy baseline.

Slowly but steadily, while we’ve been preoccupied with trying to meet demands that outstrip our resources, grappling with unfair treatment, or watching our working hours encroach upon our downtime, burnout has become the new baseline in many work environments. From the 40% of Gen Z workers who believe burnout is an inevitable part of success, to executives who believe high-pressure, “trial-by-fire” assignments are a required rite of passage, to toxic hustle culture that pushes busyness as a badge of honor, too many of us now expect to feel overwhelmed, over-stressed, and eventually burned out at work. When pressures are mounting and your work environment continues to be stressful, it’s all the more important to take proactive steps to return to your personal sweet spot of stress and remain there as long as you can. The author presents several strategies.

If we’re exposed to something repeatedly, it seems we can become desensitized to almost anything. An event that once evoked shock can come to seem routine; what once prompted alarm can eventually inspire no more than a shrug.

• Kandi Wiens , EdD, is a senior fellow at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education and the author of the book Burnout Immunity : How Emotional Intelligence Can Help You Build Resilience and Heal Your Relationship with Work (HarperCollins, 2024). A nationally known researcher and speaker on burnout, emotional intelligence, and resilience, she developed the Burnout Quiz to help people understand if they’re at risk of burning out.

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A Man of Honor (Harte Family Saga Book 8) Kindle Edition

The prequel to Barbara Taylor Bradford's New York Times bestselling and dazzling saga A Woman of Substance . Opening five years before the start of A Woman of Substance , A Man of Honor begins with 13-year-old Blackie O’Neill facing an uncertain future in rural County Kerry. Orphaned and alone, he has just buried his sister, Bronagh, and must leave his home to set sail for England, in search of a better life with his mother’s brother in Leeds. There, he learns his trade as a navvy, amid the grand buildings and engineering triumphs of one of England’s most prosperous cities, and starts to dream of greater things... And then, high on the Yorkshire moors, in the mists of a winter morning he meets a kitchen maid called Emma Harte. In A Man of Honor , the true Blackie O'Neill is revealed. For the first time, readers discover his story: his tumultuous life, the obstacles facing him, the desire he has to throw off the impotence of poverty and move up in the world. Like his friend Emma, he is ambitious, driven, disciplined, and determined to make it to the top. And like Emma Harte, he is an unforgettable character for the millions who loved the book.

• Print length 451 pages
• Language English
• Sticky notes On Kindle Scribe
• Publisher St. Martin's Press
• Publication date December 28, 2021
• File size 4162 KB
• Page Flip Enabled
• Word Wise Enabled
• Enhanced typesetting Enabled
• See all details

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About the author, product details.

• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08R2KFCW9
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ St. Martin's Press (December 28, 2021)
• Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 28, 2021
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• File size ‏ : ‎ 4162 KB
• Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
• Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
• Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 451 pages
• #1,172 in Historical British Fiction
• #1,685 in Historical British & Irish Literature
• #1,687 in Military Historical Fiction

About the author

Barbara taylor bradford.

Barbara Taylor Bradford, OBE, is one of the world's best loved storytellers. Her 1979 debut novel, A Woman of Substance, ranks as one of the top-ten bestselling books of all-time, with more than 30 million copies in print. All her novels to date have been major worldwide bestsellers.

Barbara was born in Leeds, West Yorkshire, the only child of Freda and Winston Taylor. She grew up in the Leeds suburb of Armley and left school at 15 for the typing pool at the Yorkshire Evening Post. At 16 she was a reporter, and at 18 she became the paper’s first woman’s page editor. By the time she was 20, she had moved to London where she became a fashion editor and columnist on Fleet Street. Barbara started writing fiction when she was just seven, and sold her first short story to a magazine for seven shillings and sixpence when she was ten years old.

Barbara’s books have sold more than 91 million copies worldwide in more than 90 countries and 40 languages. Ten of her books were made into Emmy-nominated miniseries and television movies by her late husband, the film producer Robert Bradford.

In 2007, Barbara was awarded an OBE by Queen Elizabeth II in the Queen's Birthday Honours list for her contributions to literature. A passionate supporter of literacy, she is an ambassador for the National Literacy Trust; in 2019 she was made an ambassador for Women in Journalism and in the same year she was presented with The Leeds Award, which recognised her loyalty to, and depiction of, her Yorkshire roots. Her original manuscripts are archived at the Brotherton Library at Leeds University, alongside the works of the Bronte sisters. She lives in New York City.

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