The World's Best Book Summaries
Who are the main The Things They Carried characters? How do their stories demonstrate both the humanity of soldiers and the dehumanizing effects of war? The Things They Carried is a collection of interconnected short stories about the experiences of a company of young American men serving in the Vietnam War. We’ll cover the primary The Things They Carried characters and their main scenes in the book.
What happened during the midnight ride of Paul Revere? Why was Paul Revere so successful in spreading his message? Why haven’t you heard of his counterpart, William Dawes? Why is he a major influencer in the history of America? What can modern influencers learn from him? We’ll cover why the midnight ride of Paul Revere was so successful, and what it teaches us about the best way to communicate and spread our ideas.
What happens in the chapter in The Things They Carried called “The Lives of the Dead”? How does “The Lives of the Dead” show the origins of author/narrator O’Brien’s writing style and his belief in the power of storytelling? We’ll look at the basic elements of this chapter in The Things They Carried, “The Lives of the Dead,” and look at how a childhood love led to the narrator’s desire to write stories.
Today we can do amazing things: we can predict hurricanes and tornadoes, we can build skyscrapers of all shapes, and we can save people from heart attacks and severe injuries that would have been fatal a few decades ago.Yet highly trained, experienced, and capable people regularly make avoidable mistakes. You may be left wondering, Why do we make mistakes? We’ll cover Boston surgeon Atul Gawande’s process as he sets out to learn why smart people make avoidable errors and how to prevent them.
Who is Martha in The Things They Carried? What are the most important scenes involving her in the book? Martha is a character in The Things They Carried who only appears in the memories of First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross. Cross is in love with Martha, and he clings to his love to help him get through the war. We’ll cover the spectral presence of Martha in The Things They Carried and look at how this character impacts the events of the book.
What are the keys to creating a great, “sticky” marketing message? How do you get your marketing messages to spread? We’ll look at how to formulate marketing messages that stick and how to spread them to create an epidemic.
Aviation safety has improved dramatically in the last few decades. What elements can we credit for the increased safety of planes? While knowledge and advanced technology have certainly played their part, we might have a simple checklist to thank for improved airplane safety. Learn why.
Who is Lieutenant Jimmy Cross in The Things They Carried? What are the defining moments for his character? First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross is the commanding officer in charge of Alpha Company, a unit of the U.S. Army in the Vietnam War, in The Things They Carried. Cross is a reluctant leader and often feels guilty for the deaths of his men. We’ll cover the most important scenes involving Lieutenant Jimmy Cross in The Things They Carried.
What is the “network effect”? How does it work? What impact does the network effect have on how you spread your fabulous ideas? The network effect is the theory that, in some cases, the number of users of a good or service affects the value of that good or service. According to the network effect, the more users, the higher the value of the service or product. We’ll cover how the network effect works and how we’ve become so overwhelmed by the various networks available to us that we’re starting to become immune to them.
How does Ted Lavender die in The Things They Carried? What is the significance of his death? Ted Lavender is shot in the head and killed outside a small village during the Vietnam War in The Things They Carried. His death comes entirely out of the blue and deeply impacts his commanding officer. We’ll cover how Ted Lavender dies and how his fellow soldiers deal with his death. Learn how Lavender’s death (and the reactions to it) exemplify the themes of the novel.