Power of Habit and Reaching the Sky

I am really inspired by two books that I'm halfway through reading. These books affected me in different ways.

First is called the Power of Habit, by Charles Duhigg. I know nothing about the author, but either he is brilliant, or he has darn good editors. The book is a business psychology book, looking at (What else?) successful companies, personal leadership and organizational culture.

The books mantra is nothing new, I've read books around 94-95 which had variations of the same thing. What I really like is how the author builds his argument chapter by chapter, revealing gradually, and changing the argument and point of discussion. The insights are ok, but the writing style is what kept me going.

The second book is called Starman, by Piers Bizony. It's a biography of Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space. It starts from his childhood, and traces path of his family, family tragedy during Nazi occupation, his motivation for being in the air force. What I like about the biography is that it's stated in a matter-of-fact way. Bizony wanted to highlight the everyday aspect of his life, rather than building a myth, as do many storytellers about American Icon (This year, I also read Kitty Kelly's bio of Oprah, which is the other end of the spectrum). I like the sensibility of this book, and want to finish reading it as soon as possible.