Book reviews are a great way for self-publishing authors to gain exposure. After all, how can someone buy your book if he or she doesn’t know it exists? Paired with other elements of your book promotion strategy, requesting reviews is a great way to get people talking about what you’ve written.
When we read good reviews, we definitely like to share them. It gives the author a few (permanent) moments of fame and allows us to let the community know about a great book. Here’s this week’s book review:
Greed Disease
by Ted Folkert
ISBN: 9781478790822
Synopsis*:
This book is about the impact of greed on our livelihood and on the sustainability of our planet. Greed exercised by the rich and powerful and the behemoth corporations provides challenging obstacles for the working class of our society – growing income and wealth inequality and exacerbating worker exploitation. Even worse, it endangers our planet, threatening the life-sustaining habitat that enabled life and which is essential in sustaining life. Without corrective action, the ultimate result does not look promising for our future. For most of us members of our society, as we go about acquiring the essentials for living a comfortable life, doing business is not a level playing field. Dealing with the normal deception and dishonesty in advertising and marketing, and navigating the cleverness of the rentier element of society can be treacherous experiences for the powerless working-class. Kind of like swimming with sharks. Lots of books have been written about the world of finance, the banking industry, and the enormous power and influence that has silently matriculated to those who occupy the control of money. After all, some say that “money is the root of all evil.” H. L. Mencken is attributed to having said: “If they say it isn’t about money, it’s about money.” Someone said: “money talks and baloney walks.” When bank robber Willie Sutton was asked why he robs banks, he replied: “because that’s where the money is.” Willie isn’t around to rob banks any longer, but there are lots of others ready, willing, and able – not with a gun, perhaps, but in more clever ways. This book is about money and the power and influence that accompany money, the quest for power and influence that drives the quest for money, and the changing mindset of humans as evolution progressed from a quest for food, shelter, and safety to an incessant search for and capture of comfort and pleasure. It is about the impact of the growth in population from a few thousand people on the planet to several billion people on the planet and the progressing destruction of the planet for human habitation as deception and dishonesty have become commonplace and greed consumes us all.
* courtesy of Amazon.com
Featured Review
“Greed Disease” by Ted Folkert is a business & economics book directed to all readers. The book begins with a definition of greed. In short it states that everyone has a level of greed that motivates us to work for our survival and our own goals. So a balanced amount of greed is actually ok, and maybe even necessary. It is an unbalanced level that can make ‘greed’ a disease.
During this introductory part of the book, the reader might feel the author is being a little repetitive, yet, I hope readers push through it, as I think this portion is the foundation of what comes next, and I believe that the reader will find it to be worth it. Following this introduction, the author presents readers with all current and real cases in our economy which reflects how the ‘greed disease’ was the catalyst to the victimization of the people by powerful business CEOs, banks, and politicians, to benefit themselves. I found this portion of the book not only enlightening, but also entertaining as the author’s voice felt to me like a narration of different 20/20 cases. In the end of the book the author puts everything in perspective by taking the reader through the goals and missions of all the different US parties, and the implications this disease has on our world and way of life. As Folkert states in this book, “Our political mindset has been transformed into one of acceptance of deception…” I am a reader that agrees with him.
Ted Folkert has done an amazing job presenting readers with a short, to the point and plain language book that puts into perspective what we, the regular people, are letting happen in our economy, even though we are being victimized by it. The format he chose to deliver his message to readers is effective, entertaining, enlightening and impeccably written. Readers not familiar with economic topics will feel a little more knowledgeable about past and current economic scenarios where unbalanced income and insatiable greed make themselves evident.
Overall, I found “Greed Disease” by Ted Folkert to be enlightening, entertaining, and thought provoking. Enough that it has motivated me to look more into what is going on currently in the news, and talk and voice my opinion and concerns to others. This fact alone illustrates vividly the five-star rating I give to “Greed Disease.” I definitely recommend!
– reviewed by Susan Violante for Readers’ Favorite
Another Opinion
GREED DISEASE, by Ted Folkert, is a compelling and comprehensive tour de force of the manifestations of greed, and impact it has on our global civilization. As we dwell on greed, it is revealed how it constantly undermines and conflicts with the common good, and the greater interest of society. It is an eternal and timeless struggle between mankind’s self-interest and base desires, driven by personal greed, at the expense of the common good. Greed dominates the world of banking, corporate management, finance, and politics, to name only the main players. Over time, it leads to a concentration of wealth and power in the hands of a smaller elite, at the expense of a decent life for the dwindling middle class. Yet, greed is nothing new, and not likely to disappear. However, the author explains that it has taken us to the very brink of a global crisis in climate change, water scarcity and depletion of resources that could literally challenge survival of humanity on earth. The author quotes Professor Jeffrey D. Sachs in his 2011 book—“The Price of Civilization” when he writes, “We exist in a bizarre combination of Stone Age emotions, medieval beliefs, and god-like technology.” He further quotes Professor Sachs, “Our challenges lie not so much in our productivity, technology, and natural resources but in our ability to cooperate on an honest basis. Will the super-rich finally own up to their responsibilities to the rest of society?” The author follows with a call to action and a detailed series of steps to offer hope for a national and global remedy. All of which is very pertinent to each of us, our children, and our grandchildren. Thus, this is a highly recommended book to read, and ponder, with careful consideration.
– reviewed on Amazon by T.L. Needham
Thanks for reading! Keep up with the latest in the world of indie and self-published books by watching this space!
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