December Books -- Blacksnake, Not So Smart, BossyPants, Shangri-La

* “Blacksnake’s Path”:amazon by William Heath. Heath could have written a dry history of the settling of the Northwest Territories and the conflicts between the settlers and the Native Americans. But instead he wrote a fictionalized story of a frontiersman, William Wells, and his life on both sides of the conflicts. Interesting, particularly for those of us from that part of the US. 5 stars on amazon (tho thinly reviewed), 3.88 on goodreads, I’ll give it a 4. * “You Are Not So Smart”:amazon by David McRaney. A great set of essays on our psychological failings – how we make emotional decisions and rationalize them away, how susceptible we are to marketing tricks, how terrible we are at calculating probabilities, and so on. Very informative. 4.5 stars on amazon, 3.97 on goodreads, definitely a 4 star read. * “Bossypants”:amazon by Tina Fey. Ok but not worth all the gushing accolades. Yes we all like Tina Fey but this is nothing special. 3 stars from me, versus 4 on Amazon and Goodreads. * “Lost in Shangri-La”:amazon by Mitchell Zuckoff. WWII plane crash in New Guinea amongst stone age tribes. Excellent telling of the story. 4 stars on amazon, 3.75 on Goodreads, 4 for me.