Off the Sidelines by Kirsten Gillibrand

Off the Sidelines: Raise Your Voice, Change the World by Kirsten Gillibrand
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I read this because Gillibrand is one of the 2020 Presidential candidates. Unfortunately, this isn’t a policy book; it’s part memoir and part resume of her legislative pursuits on behalf of New York. That said, I think it’s difficult to be a woman/mother in my age-group and not be delighted by Gillibrand’s personality. She’s funny and very relatable and to the extent that she mentions her current policies, which is not very much, I’m in agreement with her positions.

On the other hand, she tried to address one of my central concerns about her, her House gun record, but I don’t think she did so persuasively enough.

She’s not my preferred candidate, and she’s not currently polling well. Nonetheless, if by some miracle she became the Democratic nominee, I’d be pleased to vote for her.

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All Your Worth by Elizabeth Warren, Amelia Warren Tyagi

All Your Worth: The Ultimate Lifetime Money Plan by Elizabeth Warren
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is basically Dave Ramsey's plan which I think already existed when this book was written. (Dave published Financial Peace in the 1990s.)

Similarities to Dave: This book is mostly about the evils of credit cards and debt in general. While they don't recommend paying the smallest debt first (classic Dave Ramsey) but neither do they insist you pay the highest interest rate debt first.

Bad differences from Dave: The authors suggest doing a bunch of worksheets that I have no interest in whatsoever.

Good differences from or additions to Dave: One new idea is dividing your needs (50% of income), savings (20%), and fun (30%). The authors discuss how to make sure your fun spending is actually fun and not guilt or emotional-hole spending. Asking for medical discounts and free samples of drugs. Getting drugs from Canada. Good marriage advice. Good warnings about how everyone in the system is trying to rip you off. Warnings about owning a home may or may not be a good deal (including a discussion of closing costs, fees, shady mortgage practices).

One particularly interesting thing is that the authors' concerns about job loss, shady mortgages, and foreclosure seem prescient given that this book predates the 2007-2008 financial crisis.

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Living History by Hillary Rodham Clinton

Living History by Hillary Rodham Clinton
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

There's a lot in this memoir. Clinton discusses her childhood, her time as the Governor's wife in Arkansas, her time as Frist Lady, and her run for New York Senate. She discusses controversial policy issues such as the Clinton-era welfare reforms and her attempt to introduce health insurance reform. She discusses foreign policy challenges during her husband's administration. She also gives her perspective of the numerous scandals that dogged the White House during her husband's administration including Whitewater and the Monica Lewinsky scandal. It was definitely an interesting and a good reminder of all the history we lived through ourselves.

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