Review by Onyinye Excel -- Burn Zones by Jorge P. Newbery

[Onyinye Excel]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Burn Zones" by Jorge P. Newbery.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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"Everyone's life is full of burn zones, which test the limit of our bodies and minds." says Jorge P. Newbery. I have had some trials and challenges in my life that I subsequently overcame. Reading Burn Zones (Playing Life's Bad hands) gave storytelling and life's challenges a refreshing perspective.

The book - Burn Zones (Playing Life's Bad Hands) by Jorge P. Newbery is an autobiography of the author - Jorge P. Newbery. His father is from Argentina, and his mother is a white woman. The challenges Jorge faces as he tries to reinvent himself in several areas/aspects of his life is the bedrock of this inspiring tale. A burn zone from my own deductions happens when you are faced with fierce opposition. You and the opposition cannot even predict what the outcome would be. The author starts from being a Paperboy. His survival of several burn zones both in the present and in the future takes the story from one level of discovery to another. How does one even survive a burn zone? Find out when you read this book.

Narrated in the first-person narrative, the author takes the reader on an in-depth recognition of one's strength, flaws, and mistakes. His choice of words were a bit complex a times e.g. 'de facto intelligence', but there were not many of them. The story had an inspiring plot and alot of intrigue and suspense. For an autobiography, the use of pictures in the story was very wonderful. It made me appreciate his gradual improvement as I read the story.

On a scale of 1 to 4, I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. I did not give it a 3 because it had only few grammatical errors that could easily be overlooked. It looked like it was professionally edited. I gave it a 4 because it had an inspiring plot worthy of commendation.

What I liked most in the story was the author's rise in real estate mortgage business. It was interesting that he actually had no prior knowledge of the business before venturing into it. I particularly appreciated the steps he memorized on how to be an excellent loan officer. My reason for liking this is that I learnt a lot from the steps he memorized.

If there was anything I disliked most in the story, it would be the way the city seemed to have conspired against him in his loss of Woodland Meadows. I particularly did not like that the author did not shed light on what happened (consequences) to the city as a result of what they did to him. My reason for disliking this the most is that an explanation about this aspect of the story would have given the story a justified perspective in the reader's eyes.

I recommend this book to entrepreneurs, youths, and everyone in general. This is because everyone (especially youths and upcoming entrepreneurs) would easily identify with what the author called his 'burn zones'. On the other hand, the press, city politicians e.g. mayor of a city, may have to be more open-minded when they read this book. They may not find this book appealing except on an open-minded level. This is because of the author's experience at the hands of the press and the city in the story. Also, those who feel the issue of racism is being overflogged might not find this book appealing because of the author's perspective about African-Americans.

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Burn Zones
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[[Danielle]]

I have been debating on reading this book ever since it popped up as a book to review. However, I am not normally a non-fiction fan when reading for pleasure. It sounds like there are elements that are more story-driven, however, so maybe I'll give it a shot.

[Onyinye Excel]

Thanks Dani. You would learn a lot from this book. It is very inspiring.