My 2012 Reading List

hi friends, I am sharing here my list of books that I read in 2012. Most of them I’ve finished in the kindle version and I am also sharing some of my views about them. I hope you enjoy. Also feel free to share your recommendations with me at edge@superedge.net 

	Sarah’s Key (finished on 5-Dec-2012)  A 10 year-old girl is brutally arrested with her family by the French/Nazi police; before she is taken as prisoner she locks her younger little brother in a cupboard thinking that she will be back within a few hours. Incredibly emotional, glorious story, tear-jerker!
	The Life of Pi (finished on 15-Nov-2012) Fascinating story of a kid, called Pi, who shared months adrift in the ocean a tiger in a small boat. The story touch in several points about spirituality, God, life and death. Some might argue that this is a blatant copy of another book, Max and the Cats by Moacyr Scliar, a famous Brazilian writer, where a Jewish refugee crosses the Atlantic sharing a boat with a jaguar. Indeed a *very* similar plot. Nevertheless, a great read. I recommend.
	Is Not About the Bike (2nd reading) Before you walk away amongst all the doping controversy, let me tell you I do not condone or support drugs in sport, but as story-telling goes there is no doubt: this is a fantastic book. I am reading it once again because it is such a good read, and I am doing it with a “new set of eyes”, taking in all the input from the current Lance Armstrong scandal… it is a bit sad I must say. An interesting case: Years ago this was a life story, now is more like a fiction. A good one.
	Presenting to Win: The Art of Telling Your Story, Updated and Expanded Edition I took over this book after a recommendation from a colleague. Apparently this is a book targeting managers.Summary was something along the lines “If you need to start somewhere with storytelling there is not a better book I could recommend”
	Cloud Atlas Amazing book. The first chapters are very hard to read because the protagonist is writing from centuries ago…but once one gets into the writer’s mind and style it is definitely a page turner and there is an amazing twist further down the book. There is a movie coming about it. If you find too hard reading, try the audio-book which is also excellent and you can listen the whole in about 1-2 weeks.
	The Maverick and His Machine: Thomas Watson, Sr and the Making of IBM If you love to understand how to great business minds works, or if you are a person who loves technology this book is an essential reading for you. This biography is brilliant and offers an accurate insight into one of the greatest business man of the 20th century, not to mention he founded IBM, a model followed by most of the big tech companies.
	The Hunger Games (Book I) Tells the story of a fascinating dystopian world where society is divided in zones and kids participate in a bloody game, watched by millions, and where only one should survive as victor. Topics are: war, authoritarian governments and obsession with fashion and celebrity.
	Catching Fire (Book II) The second book, of The Hunger Games trilogy, our hero Katniss is the centre of a political dispute and a puppet in a crowd controlling manipulation via TV. I just can’t tell more without risking spoil the story. This book is much better than 1st one, IMHO.
	Mockingjay (Book III) The final book of The Hunger Games trilogy. A revolution is going on and tells a story about wars, more dead kids and sacrifices. High stakes at play for a group of very deceiving people, conflicting personal desires, population needs, and power plays. A great finish to the trilogy.
	Steve Jobs: The Exclusive Biography A very unique looks of the most brilliant minds of our century. Tells the story behind the Apple-juggernaut and the very conflicting, polarizing and, more often than not, brutal personality of Steve Jobs. A must-read book for everyone who wants to understand Steve, and to see that success is a very relative measure.
	The Jesus Incident Frank Herbert from Dune delivers another masterpiece. A group of people in another planet finding similarities to our life style and beliefs. Topics are: Religion, Jesus and God, Science, extra-terrestrial live, … very captivating storytelling. This is actually the 2nd book of a trilogy. I did not know that but I read it anyway and enjoyed through and through.
	Code Complete If you are an IT professional and care about the quality of your work, you must read this book; if you haven’t, do this as soon as you can. Discuss projects, timelines, deliverables, and dealing with the chaos of project managements. A classic never gets old.
	Linchpin: Are you indispensable? We live in a very competitive workplace, and everyday we have to make choices and sacrifices to keep moving forward. This book is about these choices and how they impact our future. Linchpins are those guys who find a way to do things when others think there's nothing can be done. Seth is challenging us to become linchpins.

By Edge Pereira