Lives in Ruins: Archaeologists and the Seductive Lure of Human Rubble
By Marilyn Johnson
****
“When the Apocalypse comes, you want to know an archaeologist, because we know how to make fire, catch food, and create hill forts”
― Marilyn Johnson, Lives in Ruins: Archaeologists and the Seductive Lure of Human Rubble
I wanted to be an archaeologist when I was in high school. I'm actually pretty sure that's what I told the year book people when they asked what career I planned to go into. HA! I wouldn't have lasted 5 minutes as an actual archaeologist. I don't like getting dirty, bugs, or the outdoors.
I do like history, and discovering new things, and the idea of lost stories being discovered and told again -- hence my fascination with this field. I'm glad I became a librarian; I can be surrounded by these stories once they're brought into the open and help other people discover them. Without all the dirt and scorpions (though lets not talk about what is occasionally "discovered" in the book drop or children's play area).
Lives in Ruins was a fascinating look into a profession that people think is super cool (thanks Indiana Jones!), but doesn't get the support it needs to keep our pasts from being destroyed. Did you know that most archaeologists have a lot of trouble making ends meet - at work and at home? Archaeology, like Library Science, is not where the money is.
Marilyn Johnson is a very brave woman and a very great writer; she makes you feel like you're bumping along on the road to a pyramid in Peru, digging in the Grecian sunshine at a forgotten temple in the Mediterranean, or walking above a secret military graveyard in the middle of a field in New England. If you're fascinated with Archaeology or history or just enjoy a great non-fiction book, I'd highly recommend Lives in Ruins. Now I can't wait to read Johnson's book about my own profession!
Give and Take: A Revolutionary Approach to Success
By Adam M. Grant
***
“This is what I find most magnetic about successful givers: they get to the top without cutting others down, finding ways of expanding the pie that benefit themselves and the people around them. Whereas success is zero-sum in a group of takers, in groups of givers, it may be true that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.”
― Adam Grant, Give and Take: A Revolutionary Approach to Success
From Goodreads:
For generations, we have focused on the individual drivers of success: passion, hard work, talent, and luck. But today, success is increasingly dependent on how we interact with others. It turns out that at work, most people operate as either takers, matchers, or givers. Whereas takers strive to get as much as possible from others and matchers aim to trade evenly, givers are the rare breed of people who contribute to others without expecting anything in return.
Using his own pioneering research as Wharton's youngest tenured professor, Grant shows that these styles have a surprising impact on success. Although some givers get exploited and burn out, the rest achieve extraordinary results across a wide range of industries. Combining cutting-edge evidence with captivating stories, this landmark book shows how one of America's best networkers developed his connections, why the creative genius behind one of the most popular shows in television history toiled for years in anonymity, how a basketball executive responsible for multiple draft busts transformed his franchise into a winner, and how we could have anticipated Enron's demise four years before the company collapsed-without ever looking at a single number.
Praised by bestselling authors such as Dan Pink, Tony Hsieh, Dan Ariely, Susan Cain, Dan Gilbert, Gretchen Rubin, Bob Sutton, David Allen, Robert Cialdini, and Seth Godin-as well as senior leaders from Google, McKinsey, Merck, Estee Lauder, Nike, and NASA-Give and Take highlights what effective networking, collaboration, influence, negotiation, and leadership skills have in common. This landmark book opens up an approach to success that has the power to transform not just individuals and groups, but entire organizations and communities.
From Me:
This is our Florida One Book-One State pick for the upcoming year. It's an in depth look at personalities from the angle of givers, takers, and matchers, and how they succeed and/or fail in the workplace. It's highly readable with interesting anecdotes.
That being said, this is not the kind of book I choose to read; give me fiction or give me boredom. I wouldn't label Give and Take as boring; it's much better than that. But still -- there were no dragons.
