A Book I Read: Inside Apple

Inside Apple by Adam Lashinsky 

(GoodReads Review)

I read the Arabic version of this book, and the translation by Daniel Saleh was really good and easy to follow. The book goes deep into one of the largest, most successful companies in the world, discussing points like:

• The importance of secrecy within the company
• Giving attention to even the slightest details
• Company tactics
• Apple University
• The company going against major business concepts
• Apple's relation with its fans
• Steve Jobs: his personality, temper, obsession with details etc...

The author poses a few questions concerning Apple's future:

• How long will the company survive after the death of Steve Jobs?
• Does the company have what it takes to stay on top?

The language used in the book is easy and interesting, and it keeps you reading until the very end. I highly recommend it especially if you're a fan of Apple products, if you're into technology and technological devices, or if you're simply just curious. Other books I discovered (but haven't read yet) after reading Inside Apple were:

• Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson (A biography)
• Inside Steve's Brain by Leander Kahney
• The Facebook Effect by David Kirkpatrick

A Book I Read: A Thousand Splendid Suns

GoodReads Review

A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Housseini is a very emotional and powerful book. It takes place in Afghanistan mainly, during the war. It tells the story of two women: The first is Mariam; who is a harami, born to the wealthy Jalil Khan and his housekeeper. Upon her mom's suicide, she is forced to marry Rasheed, a man older than her. The second woman is Laila, born in an educated family. She marries Rasheed later on, after her parents both die, in an attempt to save the child she's carrying from her childhood friend/ lover, Tariq. Mariam is jealous and unkind to Laila at first, stating that Laila stole her husband from her- despite the fact that Rasheed is mean and unfair. After Laila tries to stop Rasheed from beating Mariam once, the two women become close.

The book sheds light on the problems those women face: from wanting to be loved, to being oppressed both by their husband and the Talibans, and being treated badly. I recommend this book, but not to everyone. It is loaded with emotions and can make you cry. If you're into emotional books, then this is the one for you.

Quotes from the book (in no particular order):

• "Marriage can wait, education cannot"
• "A society has no chance of success if its women are uneducated"
• "Of all the hardships a person had to face, none was more punishing than the simple act of waiting" 
• "You see, some things I can teach you. Some you learn from books. But there are things that, well, you have to see and feel"
• "But if you have a book that needs urgent reading,' she said, 'then Hakim is your man"

A Book I Read: The Secret

The Secret by Rhonda Byrne 
Read in: February 2013

"The Secret" which the book refers to in its title is the Law of Attraction (LOA). This natural law states that "like attracts like", and so we get exactly what we think about. So, negative thoughts lead to a negative life while positive thoughts lead to a positive life.
The book talks about the importance of gratitude, being happy, and remaining positive.
What I thought was a downside in the book was how it went way too far in some of its ideas. It says that God manifests in us as human, that we are 'energy' meaning that we cannot be created or destroyed, and it somehow implies that people who suffered during wars and natural disasters for example brought this to themselves; which is impossible because how can a newborn have negative thoughts that attract events such as war?
Despite that, I gave the book a 5-star rating on GoodReads (My Book Review on GoodReads) since it really influenced me to be more positive.
Some of the quotes mentioned in the book:

• "Your thoughts become things."
• "You create your own universe as you go along." -Winston Churchill
• "Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staricase. Just take the first step." -Martin Luther King
• "All that we are is a result of what we have thought." -Buddha
• "Whether you think you can or think you can't, either way you are right." -Henry Ford

(Book Website)

Recommended!