The Fish That Ate the Whale is about the life of Samuel Zemurray, the Banana King. You know the phrase, "Banana Republic", well Sam invented it. Let me first say that I'm embarrassed to say I've never heard of the man before reading the book, and yet his business accomplishments rank right up there with the greats. When you look back at the turn of the 19th century, these were the years of the business titans. Rockefeller with Oil, Carnegie with Steel, JP Morgan with Electricity, Ford with Automobiles, Vanderbilt with Railroads, and Sam Zemurray with Bananas.

Sam immigrated to America in 1891 with absolutely nothing and became one of the richest men in the world. Sam made his fortune in the banana business. He started at the very bottom and due to his relentless worth ethic and lack of ethics, rose to the top. To give you a sense of the size and scope of his control later in life: By 1942, Sam via his interests in the United Fruit Company owned and controlled 75% of all private land in Guatemala, controlled 75% of all trade, and owned almost all of the roads, power stations, phone lines, seaports, and every mile of railroad in Guatemala. And this is just one country.

The reason most of us have never heard of Sam Zemurray is the tactics he used to gain such power and influence and the things he was willing to do to protect it. Such as literally hiring a private army to overthrow the government of Honduras in 1911, and overthrowing the government in Guatemala in 1953 (with the support of the US Government!). Sam had just as many US government officials on the payroll as he had employees.

The book reads like a novel, and as soon as I picked it up I couldn't put it down. The book provides a great history on the fruit trade and the rise of Sam Zemurray, The Banana King.

What John Cuevas accomplished in his detailed account of Cat Island was truly a heartened journey into the past of his own personal heritage. Cat Island, encountered in 1699 by the French while seeking the mouth of the Mississippi River, has been studied by many historians including myself. I reviewed the works of other contemporary writers such as; M. James Stevens' research papers, Nap Cassibry's Ladner Odyssey, Gloria Moran's files, and Kat Bergeron's chronicles - they all added various slices of the passing centuries, but the depth and breadth of detail is only brought forth in John's Cat Island: The History of a Mississippi Gulf Coast Barrier Island.

It is interesting to follow the changeover of ownership of the Gulf Coast from French to English to Spanish to American and the string of ownerships of the Island that resulted. As reported, Lafitte's pirates and Copeland's rum-runners hid some of their loot on Cat Island. Pirates Cove was supposedly named due to its use by Jean Lafitte. The Cat Island lighthouse, erected in 1831, was temporarily discontinued due to hurricane damages in 1860 followed by a shut-down by the Confederates in 1861. The island is now protected by being included in the Gulf Islands National Seashore (U.S. National Park Service.)

Cat Island can be seen from the shores of Pass Christian, Long Beach, and Gulfport resulting in being visually familiar to locals and tourists alike, but in reading the John Cuevas historic version, makes one want to see the Island up close - to see and feel it as Juan de Cuevas of the 1790s, knew it.

Cat Island: The History of a Mississippi Gulf Coast Barrier Island is an 191 page paperback book that with the most detailed and accuratehistory ever published about Cat Island. Cat Island: The History of a Mississippi Gulf Coast Barrier Island retails for $45.00 at Bay Book.

I had an amazing opportunity to taste a handful of the recipes that are in Modern Hospitality made by Whitney Miller at a dinner a few weeks ago and let me tell you that was a treat.  Whitney Miller's cookbook Modern Hospitality is down home southern recipes with a modern flair.  Whitney has a gift of taking classic southern dishes and elevating them to the next level.  The best part of Modern Hospitality is all the recipes in the book are easy to cook with easy to obtain ingredients. 

Through My Eyes by Tim Tebow is an enjoyable and inspirational book. It is inspiring to read a book written by Tim Tebow which has so much fame yet uses it not to his own benefit but rather for the glory of God. It is a testimony to how celebrities have such a platform to influence others. Tim Tebow is everything that kids in the younger generation should be looking for in a role model. Throughout this book, it is evident how sincere and genuine his faith is. He also gives insight to every game played in his college and NFL career. As a fan, avid reader, and football lover, I cannot recommend this book enough.