4 out of 4 stars
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There are many challenges people can encounter as they survive through their lives. However, the process of dealing with setbacks and overcoming obstacles will depend on the decisions of the individual alone. This was one lesson I garnered from the autobiography of Jorge P. Newbery entitled Burn Zones.
Burn Zones is a non-fiction book that details the significant events in the life of Jorge P. Newbery. The book opened with the strengths and weaknesses of Jorge that played a factor in how he came up with solutions to problems. The story began in his childhood when he worked as a paperboy at a tender age of seven. He then progressed to cycling an ice cream trike through his neighborhood and working as a busboy. With his savings from these jobs, he started a record company, entered the business of real estate, and founded American Homeowner Preservation. Throughout his life, he experienced various burn zones that did not only challenged his optimism and perseverance, but also the hard work and passion he invested in achieving his goals.
What I loved most about the book was the writing style of the author. It enabled me to fully immerse myself in the story of the author. As I read through the many risks and challenges Jorge was facing, I felt his passion and hope in overcoming his burn zones. I was able to sympathize with him during his most challenging burn zone which was what happened after a natural disaster in Woodland Meadows. This chapter showed the difficulty of solving a problem that people in power were taking advantage of. Aside from the writing style, I also loved the lessons I gained while reading most especially the learning from Jorge's realization in the last chapter that the choices a person decides on are theirs alone. I could relate to this lesson because each individual experiences their own type of burn zone, but it will ultimately depends on the person on how they will handle it.
I could not find a single thing that I disliked about the book. I enjoyed reading and I did not even notice the time fly by as I was too engrossed with the happenings of the story. The book is well-written in terms of the writing style and depicting the story. It can also be considered well-edited because there were no errors.
This book deserves a rating of 4 out 4 stars because of the message it conveys to the readers and the way it was wonderfully written. Since there were scenes with a bit of violence and oppression, I will not recommend it to people who are sensitive to these themes. However, I will highly recommend this book to readers who are looking for inspiration and are open to learning valuable life lessons.
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Burn Zones
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