Edited by Margie Kelley

Borders and the Self
By Chinwe Ajena-Sagna (MBA 2003)
Masobe Books
“Who are you?” Every border tells a story. Every story has its origins. Tracing a cultural lineage from the beginnings of Igbo history in the ninth century by delineating foundational aspects of kinship, wealth, funeral rites, and marriage, Borders and the Self elevates the question of Igbo identity by threading in the personal histories of the Ajene and Okeke families—which became united by marriage amid the backdrop of the Nigerian Civil War—into a broader, more universal narrative. This approach shows how a culture that has existed for centuries can be warped and transformed by external forces like war and colonialism, and how members of an ethnic group migrate to survive not only drastic changes but economic realities. Borders and the Self is about the confluence of personal struggle and the survival of a people. It paints a theoretical and moving portrait of the antecedents of transnationalism and is a must read for students of history who care about the shaping of our modern world.

Ping: The Secrets of Successful Virtual Communication
By Andrew Brodsky (PhDOB 2017)
Simon Element/Simon Acumen
Award-winning professor, management consultant, and virtual communications expert Andrew Brodsky is here to tell you that, yes, that meeting could have been an email. And that email? Maybe it should have been a voice note. (Really!) And your camera—it’s okay to turn it off; sometimes it’s even better. Split into three parts, this book tackles the core components of how to better navigate communication challenges and technology in contemporary workplaces. Brodsky addresses critical topics such as when to choose an email, instant message, or video call; how to make better virtual first impressions; methods for optimizing communication productivity; how to build strong relationships at a distance; ways to win negotiations and solve conflicts from behind a screen, and more. With enlightening stories, interviews with top business leaders, and Brodsky’s cutting-edge social science research on virtual communication tools, Ping is the necessary playbook for mastering virtual communication to increase productivity, gain influence, and deepen connections

A Layperson’s Guide to the Middle Ages in Western Europe
By Brian R. Buxton (MBA 1977)
Independently Published
A Layperson’s Guide to the Middle Ages by Brian Buxton covers the Middle Ages in a new way: quickly, in simple language, and with stories, profiles, interpretations, maps, paintings, and images that make it easy for the layperson to follow. Buxton provides a clear explanation of the lives and ideas of philosophers from Thales to Ochkam. He pays particular attention to the church and how the purpose of medieval philosophy was radically different from that of ancient Greece and Rome. At medieval universities philosophy was a prerequisite to studies in law, accounting, and estate management that led (like law and MBA degrees today) to safe, secure, stimulating indoor jobs that provided the infrastructure for society that was necessary for the Modern Era to come about. For so short a book on medieval history, it pays close attention to the contributions of the Byzantine Empire, Muslim scholars from Afghanistan to Spain, women, and dissenters. Who will enjoy this book? Just about everyone, but especially curious laypeople without any background in this field, students trying to get a handle on a difficult history course, business executives who need to add a little culture to their conversations with clients, and people who have already read a lot of books on history and philosophy and are looking for something new.

The Broken Rung: When the Career Ladder Breaks for Women and How They Can Succeed in Spite of It
By Kweilin Ellingrud (MBA 2005), Lareina Yee, Marie Del Mar Martinez
Harvard Business Review Press
Women around the world do extremely well when it comes to their education. They graduate at higher rates than men and have higher average GPAs. But then a strange thing happens upon entering the workforce: They immediately lose their advantage. When the first promotions come around, the slide continues. For every 100 men promoted to manager, only 81 women overall and 77 women of color get promoted. This is what McKinsey senior partners Kweilin Ellingrud, Lareina Yee, and María del Mar Martínez call “the broken rung,” and its effects compound throughout women’s careers, causing them to fall behind at the start and keeping them from catching up. In this groundbreaking book, the authors reveal the underlying cause: While about half of a person’s lifetime earnings come from education and half from work experience, men get more value from their experience than women do. It is also here, in one’s work experience, that the solution lies: Women need to build their “experience capital” to level the playing field and maximize their earning potential. The authors weave data on the potential pitfalls with inspiring and instructive stories of women who have climbed over the broken rung using strategies that increased their experience capital. Leaders and companies must do more to address gender inequalities in the workplace. But you don’t have to wait. The Broken Rung is your guide for moving up the career ladder and reaching your full potential at work.

Live & Lead with Intention: A 10-Step Guide to Create a Life You Love
By Annie M. Fonte (MBA 1992)
Independently Published
Create a life you love with this 10-step self-guided playbook for women of any age. You will embark on your journey with values and experience-based methods, providing a safe place to learn and grow. The guide is an easy-to-follow, self-paced, introspective journey of intentional living that will bring you to a place of peace and perspective. This thought-provoking playbook features compelling questions and creative projects that help you understand what you genuinely desire from you relationships, self-care, finances, and more.

Chasing the Shadow: Mickey Marcus’s 200 days of Destiny
By Steven L. Ossad (MBA 1976)
University of Missouri
The life of David “Mickey” Marcus, the US Army colonel who became Israel’s first military general, has become the stuff of legends and myths (even fantasy), conspiracy, wild exaggeration, and untethered embellishment. The image of Marcus portrayed by Kirk Douglas in the film version of his life still dominates most evocations of the man, for good or ill. And these days, reactions to the book or film rest mostly on the current headlines rather than the historical context of the struggle in which Marcus died, or the events that cast him as a real-life player in an event marked by destiny. Chasing the Shadow: Mickey Marcus’s 200 Days of Destiny is the first comprehensive and balanced biography of Marcus, a founder of American Civil Affairs and Military Government doctrine and practice, and a seminal figure in early Israeli military history. Far from merely a tribute to his legacy, Ossad’s work serves as a critical tool for understanding the realities of mid-20th-century warfare in a postwar colonial struggle, and the dynamics of US-Israeli military and political relations in 1948, the critical year for Israel’s struggle for independence. Chasing the Shadow is a valuable read for those interested in Middle East history, Jewish military history, and a fascinating character whose story is told in an engaging, informative, and insightful narrative.

Think Like a Black Sheep: Unlock Your Inner Superpower and Break Free from the Crowd
By Aaron Poynton (AMP 195, 2018)
Leaders Press
In a world of followers, discover the power of leading the charge. Think Like a Black Sheep empowers you to break free from the flock and forge your own path. Uncover the benefits of thinking differently: Unlock your innate ability to question and challenge the status quo; Harness the insights from cognitive pitfalls to cultivate wisdom and resilience; and transform obstacles into opportunities by rejecting conformity and embracing individuality. This book is a manifesto for those who want to claim their unique space in the world. By embracing your inner Black Sheep, you’ll learn to navigate life’s complexities with agility and grace. Stand apart, think boldly, and live authentically.

Portraits of Ukraine: A Nation at War
By Gregory W. Slayton (MBA 1990) and Sergei Ivashenko
Aetos Poland
Portraits of Ukraine: A Nation at War offers readers a comprehensive analysis of the realities of the brutal 2022 Russian invasion within the context of Ukraine's people, history, arts, culture, traditions, and geography. Nuanced, compelling, and well-researched, Portraits of Ukraine is enhanced by hundreds of beautiful and evocative images. The authors present a complex, riveting history that has made Ukraine what it is today: an independent, democratic European nation of 40 million people who are defending their freedom, their families, and their future. With an opening statement by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Portraits of Ukraine also features an insightful introduction by former US Vice President Mike Pence and a foreword by Ukraine’s Ambassador to the United States, The Honorable Oksana Markarova.All profits from sales of this book benefit well-vetted pro-Ukrainian charities helping the millions of citizens who have been deeply wounded by Russia's ongoing war. This book is dedicated to all the people of Ukraine who are today leading the fight for democracy and the rule of law in our world.

Swinging into History: Toni Stone: Big-League Baseball’s First Woman Player
By Karen L. Swanson (MBA 1990), Illustrated by Laura Freeman
Calkins Creek
Nothing could stop Toni “Tomboy” Stone from playing baseball—not even her parents. The only girl on a church team, she persevered as insults were hurled her way from the boy players. She caught the attention of former major leaguer Gabby Street, who gave her a chance at a summer baseball school. With Coach Street’s training—and the cleats he gifted her—Toni managed to earn a spot in the minor leagues. Though teams were hesitant to sign a woman, she pitched the idea that fans would pay to see a woman play—and it worked! But Toni’s persistence and optimism were not enough to win over the Jim Crow South crowds nor her male teammates. Coaches put her in the starting lineup and then benched her early, every game, no matter her results. But her talent got noticed and she was signed by the Indianapolis Clowns, becoming the first woman to break into the pros. “Toni arrives,” shouted newspaper headlines, and she delivered! In her first professional game she ripped a single, drove in two runs, and left the crowd chanting “TONI! TONI! TONI!” Young readers will root for Toni Stone, the first woman (and the first Black woman) to break into professional baseball—taking over Hank Aaron’s roster spot—in this award-winning nonfiction picture-book biography.

Retiring: Creating a Life That Works for You
By Teresa M. Amabile, Edsel Bryant Ford Professor, Emerita at Harvard Business School; Lotte Bailyn; Marcy Crary; Douglas T. Hall, and Kathy E. Kram
Routledge
Retirement, as a major life transition, can be both thrilling and challenging in unexpected ways. Written by acclaimed authors in the fields of business leadership, careers, and work, this book goes beyond the typical financial and health-related advice on retirement, providing insights to guide you in broader areas: identity issues, relationship challenges, and questions about creating a new retirement life structure that works for you. Retiring details the retirement transition stories of 14 people—and draws on interviews with 120 people—to explore how retiring involves a reconstruction of both the person and their life structure. You’ll gain wisdom on the common themes and the wildly different approaches people take to the four big tasks of retiring: making the retirement decision, detaching from work both tangibly and psychologically, building a new life structure for retirement, and settling into a relatively stable retirement life while preparing to adjust as life unfolds into the future. In each chapter, you’ll see how the dynamic interplay of self, life structure, and external context affect a retiring person’s day-to-day experience in the final months of their career, as well as their early years of retirement—and how life satisfaction depends largely on alignment among the three.

TALK: The Science of Conversation and the Art of Being Ourselves
By Alison Wood Brooks, O’Brien Associate Professor at Harvard Business School
Crown
We all struggle with difficult conversations, but we’re often not very good at the easy ones either. Though we do it all the time, Harvard professor Alison Wood Brooks argues that conversation is one of the most complex, demanding, and delicate of all human tasks, rife with possibilities for misinterpretation and misunderstanding. And yet, conversations can also be a source of great joy, each one offering an opportunity to express who we are and learn who others are—to feel connected, loved, and alive. In TALK, Brooks shows why conversing a little more effectively can make a big difference in the quality of our close personal relationships as well as our professional success. Drawing on the new science of conversation, Brooks distills lessons that show how we can better understand, learn from, and delight each other.

The Experimentation Machine: Finding Product-Market Fit in the Age of AI
By Jeffrey J. Bussgang, Senior Lecturer at Harvard Business School
Damn Gravity Media
Today’s most successful founders know that the startups that learn the fastest will win. In The Experimentation Machine, HBS professor, entrepreneur, and venture capitalist Jeffrey J. Bussgang reveals how AI is transforming the way startups find product-market fit and scale. Applying timeless methods and cutting-edge tools, Bussgang shows you how to turn your startup into an AI-powered experimentation machine—learning faster and building smarter with leaner teams. Readers will discover why founders who use AI will replace those who don’t; how to design, sequence, and rigorously run startup experiments; tools 10x founders use to create superpowers and leverage; how to scale your startup without growing headcount; and how to redefine product-market fit for the AI age.

The World Is Your Office: How Work from Anywhere Boosts Talent, Productivity, and Innovation
By Prithwiraj Choudhury, Lumry Family Associate Professor at Harvard Business School
Harvard Business Review Press
As the debate around remote versus in-office work rages on, leaders in a wide range of industries continue to implement radically flexible work practices, allowing most, if not all, of their employees to work from anywhere. Why? They understand that geographic flexibility offers a competitive advantage: the ability to attract and retain top talent globally. In The World Is Your Office, HBS professor Prithwiraj Choudhury, who has been studying this phenomenon for over a decade, takes readers inside the trailblazing companies that are going all-in on work-from-anywhere (WFA) policies. From startups and nonprofits to government agencies and large corporations, Choudhury’s research shows why and how these organizations—and their employees—are benefiting. Choudhury also provides an extensive playbook for implementing successful WFA policies, offering leaders concrete strategies to use WFA as a means of hiring and retaining the best talent; effectively manage WFA teams, share knowledge, and combat isolation; leverage AI and automation to extend WFA into manufacturing and other deskless roles and, design programs that attract talent to different regions. Filled with actionable insights and extensive case studies, The World Is Your Office empowers leaders to embrace the future of work.

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