I’ve been promising a report on a couple of books, but not this one. Our neighbour Merlin, who lives just a few doors away, discovered last year that I like to read. Merlin was a teacher for many years and clearly still likes to read and to encourage others to read. He’s got roots in Ukraine and while having a large family that is spread throughout Alberta and Iowa, he has been in the Edmonton area most of his life.

He is a Christian, a conservative man who states that he is working at being more cognizant of God’s work in his life and in the world around him.

Merlin approached me last Thursday with a book. He told me that I would come across the name of ‘Dale’ in this book as he handed it to me. He thought I would really like the book – and he was so right. I threw it into my backpack for my trip to Toronto.

It’s about 4 hours flying time from Edmonton to Toronto. I pulled the book out before we took off, kept the screen in front of me off, and as we pulled up to the gate in Toronto I was finishing chapter 27. It pulled me through – it is interesting!

The chapters are shorter in nature and the writing feels like you’re listening to the author read you a family story.

One of the reasons I liked this book is it is history which parallels most of my life – not all but much! Secondly, it parallels the biography I am reading on Gorbachev and lastly it does have some relation to what Obama in his book (A Promised Land) which deals with arms deals, Iran, and the US military.

I think my image of the USA military is very subjective to all the great black-and-white movies I watched growing up where the good guys – the good ol’ US of A – are taking the high road, making only moral decisions and generally win each and every battle because they are right, not because they hold the biggest stick.

Well, this book pulls back some of the curtain and lets you see another side of all that.

Yes I recommend it!