Review of Burn Zones

[Kofi Deh]

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

[rwc=id31340-125]4 out of 4 stars.[/rwc]This is a fun and inspiring story, of the Horatio Alger flavor and reminiscent of great business stories like, "Buffet, the making of an American Capitalist". Although a high-school dropout, Jorge P.Newbury was from childhood determined to be successful and got off to a whirlwind start by trying his hands at everything from working as a paper-boy to hawking ice-cream. He was at various points of his career, a lending guru, a premier national real estate broker, a cyclist, a social activist, and a punk rocker. His confidence and increasing experience spurred his career in real estate from lending to amassing a collection of over 4000 properties and becoming a millionaire. Through all of his successes, Jorge remained the same at his core: a bold entrepreneur with the desire to improve the lot of everyone around him. This ethos and strong work ethic guided him in his effort to renovate properties in some of the most desperate neighborhoods to help minorities. However, he was hampered by insurance companies and stifling rules that made the progress of his work difficult. Of course, it would not have been an unforgettable story, had not an Act of God almost paralleling the Biblical parable of Job,in the form of an ice-storm, , destroy everything he has worked so hard to create, in the winter of 2004. He was financially, professionally, socially, and legally ruined. But in testament to his indomitable spirit, Jorge rose like the fabled phoenix from the ashes of defeat. Down twenty-six million dollars in debt, he found a new purpose in life and leveraged his experiences into helping other people. In his writing Jorge betrays a certain focus on activity such as his deal making in business, cycling and properties. A would-be psychoanalyst may wonder if this is an effort to avoid the vulnerability that accompanies a social life. However, this pondering is quickly put to rest when Jorge assumes enough vulnerability to recount stories of some embarrassing social interactions such as a dance session with a group of women. Apart from reading the book, I also read other reviews on Burn Zones. Other reviews have declared Burn Zones as a story of overcoming great adversity, of not giving up, and rising from failure and imminent collapse. I see it as a story of stoicism, as triumphant as the story of the preacher from Ecclesiastes. Jorge is a man who, in the words of Rudyard Kipling, was able to “meet success and failure and treat them both as impostors.” This book will expand your mental horizons on what is possible and teach you resilience. I give it a rating of 4 out of 4.

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[i]Burn Zones [/i]
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