Of Course It’s True [Except for a Couple of Lies]
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This memoir comes from an author who spent his career on the boundaries of higher education and politics. Yet, it is tough to limit to one or even two categories of what he did for his profession. He earned degrees from University of the Pacific and USC. His work took him to senior positions in Washington DC and Sacramento; it got him to serve on a couple of national commissions; it gave him the opportunity to take leadership with two startups and to serve on two insurance company boards; and to build a variety of collaborations in Mexico and elsewhere in the world. Life presented itself as a set of diverse opportunities. The book is divided into three staves (a term from Charles Dickens) - the first on family; the second on life and the third about values and philosophy. The book starts with the story of the ancestor who gave the author his name. What motivated someone to sail around the horn in 1849? It then presents discussions of family; how family influences who we become and how we interpret events differently. The second stave of the book deals with all sorts of topics including the author’s attraction to technology, travel, chance encounters with the famous and a host of other topics. The final stave presents seven chapters which explore principles that have guided the author’s life. A concluding chapter makes a spirited defense of the absolute necessity for optimism - the glass is neither half full nor half empty - we should understand that it is refillable. All the stories of all these experiences are told with humor and with a definite point of view. In a time of challenges, this is an optimist’s tale.
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About the Book
This book is a collection of stories on family, life and values. It begins with a story of the author’s namesake, who came to California in 1849, in pursuit of happiness. The middle section is about a range of events in life. The final section is about beliefs – which helped guide the author’s actions. The chapters tell individual stories but when read as a whole you will recognize a life full of experiences - some important, some not so much; but all comfortably wrapped in humor. Eclectic? You bet. Boring, no. The author recognizes that some people who participated in the events described in the book will remember things differently. That’s OK with him. Memoirs are perceptions and not necessarily precise. The author asks readers who want 100% accuracy to write their own book.
About the Author
Jonathan Brown grew up in California. He earned degrees from the University of the Pacific and a DPA from USC. He worked at the intersection of higher education and politics – first for political figures in Washington DC and Sacramento and then for an association of independent colleges and universities. While he spent a majority of his career with just one group, that was not all he did. Along the way he helped to start an insurance company; taught in several universities in the US and Mexico; and worked to improve best practices in government and nonprofit organizations. He served on a couple of national commissions, helped to develop new models of finance and worked to build linkages between US and Mexican universities.