J. Lee Shares Some of His Favorites

Upon request, below J. Lee shares some of his favorite things, including movies, books, etc.  If there’s something you’d like to know, please ask on the contact page.

I’m currently reading…

On any given day, I tend to have several books across multiple genres that I’m flipping through, so as broad as they may seem, here’s what’s literally on my nightstand or end table right now:

  • Atomic Habits by James Clear – a compelling read about the power of habit control and formation. 

  • 52 Things Daughters Need From Their Dads by Jay Payleitner – a great reminder about what’s important. 

  • The War of the Wizards by Carol Gaskin – a childhood favorite I recently picked up to revisit good old fashioned choose-your-own-adventure storytelling 

  • Master Mentors by Scott Miller – a book I’ve just recently started that focuses on practical lessons from transformative minds in the business world.

 

My “Must-Read”Thrillers List

  • Term Limits by Vince Flynn. It’s a captivating premise supported by nonstop action and some of the best character development in the genre I’ve read yet. 

  • State of the Union by Brad Thor. It hosts a great cast of characters wrapped around a very tight pace.  

  • Burn Factor by Kyle Mills. Talk about a classic paradigm – the manhunt for a brutal serial killer –with a very, very unique twist…

5 of my Favorite Books

  • The Lord Of The Rings: The best book ever written. I read it every year and my wife literally has to wave her hand in front of my face to pull me away from Middle Earth.

  • Rising Phoenix: What a cool premise for a thriller that Kyle Mills had for his debut novel…poisoning the world’s illegal drug supply and what could happen as a result. I love the way he kept me guessing in this one. 

  • Heart Of A Champion: Great YA read about the purity of baseball and the unfortunate things that can distract us from it as we move from childhood to adolescence.

  • Jurassic Park: As good as the movie is, the imagery and suspense in the book is even better. One of the most compelling books I’ve ever read. 

  • Predictably Irrational: The book provides a unique take on why we all unknowingly do the things we do. Brace yourselves for some head scratching.

 

Top-5 Favorite Authors

  • Michael Connelly: He keeps the pace moving as well as any mystery writer out there. 

  • Kyle Mills: His imagination is uncanny. When you look at his books, and not just the Vince Flynn series, you see diversity that’s comparable in the thriller genre to Tom Hanks in the acting industry. Multiple perspectives, POV, character angles…it’s impressive. 

  • Vince Flynn: RIP. There’s a lot to admire about his books, but I think the thing that jumps out the most is his ability to get me to truly love the protagonist and, for lack of a better word, hate the villain. He did a fantastic job of setting that stage. 

  • Malcolm Gladwell: His books are both captivating and factual, which is an impressive balance to strike. I’ve read them all and concluded that his mind really does just work on a different level.

  • Michael Crichton: RIP. It might be influenced by the fact that he was the first adult thriller author I really read, but his ability to intertwine the science with the suspense always captivated me and still does. You see it in ER too, the way it’s a show all about characters but centered around medicine. 

 

More J. Lee Favorites

Top-5 Favorite Movies

  • Shawshank Redemption

  • Back To The Future

  • The Godfather

  • Sandlot

  • Die Hard

Top-5 Sporting Events

  • NCAA March Madness B-ball

  • Summer Olympics

  • World Series

  • Winter Olympics

  • Super Bowl

Top-5 Desserts

  • Caramel Popcorn

  • Oreo Ice Cream Cake

  • Chocolate Chip Cookie

  • Chocolate Malt

  • Strawberries & Cream

Top-5 “Old School” TV Shows

  • Seinfeld – This relatable show about nothing still makes me laugh every time I watch.

  • The West Wing – Aaron Sorkin’s fast-paced dialogue and stories are so compelling I can’t watch just one.

  • Saved By The Bell – This show is just plain fun.  I like to make sure the episodes didn’t change since the prior fifty times I’ve watched them.

  • 24 – Every single episode ended with a cliffhanger better than the last.  And almost every guy I know wanted to be Jack Bauer.

  • Quantum Leap – This show is not in the same category as the other four for me, but it feeds my fascination with time travel and there’s no ongoing sappy love story because every setting is different.

Top-5 Spring Activities

  • Riding my bicycle on the Illinois Prairie Path

  • Playing Golf (though it rarely happens these days)

  • A round of Frisbee Golf (far more likely)

  • Fresh, cold watermelon on the back deck

  • Long exploratory walks through different towns

Top-5 Creature Comforts

  • Large desk with a bright lamp

  • Warm cup of coffee on a coaster (see The Coaster Rebel below) and in go-to mug

  • Outline by my side

  • Basement” sweatshirt and slippers in case it gets cold

  • Silence (as if such a thing exists in a house with kids

Top-5 “Things I Just Don’t Understand”

The world is comprised of different people, voices and opinions.  That’s part of what makes it so interesting. While I try to understand all of them, here are a few that still perplex me:

  • LLCs, i.e. “Left Lane Cruisers” ~ The Autobahn has no speed limit yet fewer accidents than most US interstates.  If you’re not passing, or you’re an egg timer by nature, no problem. Just move it on over to the right. It’s more relaxing that way for everyone, yourself included.  Who wants a speed demon on his or her tail?

  • PGA Wannabees ~ We all have a touch of childhood fantasy in us and a finite amount of time in life.  To me, the guy putting for a triple bogie, throwing grass in the air to check the wind direction and examining the roll of the green for ten minutes like he’s trying to win the Masters seems to have too much of one and not enough of the other.  

  • Chronic Tardiness ~ Maybe it’s because my life now runs like a German train schedule, but eight-thirty means eight-thirty, doesn’t it?  When John Smith is chronically seven minutes late with a different excuse each time, I can’t help but question whether or not his car really caught on fire or that “parade of geese” really “refused to exit the crosswalk on Broad Street.”

  • Cell Phone Daters – When I see two people on a date at a restaurant glued to their individual cell phones, part of me wants to inquire as to why they went on the date in the first place.  Candidly, the other part wants to request both of their phones and stick them in the nearby ice bucket.

  • The Coaster Rebel – The whole reason drink coasters exist (and presumably the reason people buy them) is to protect a table’s surface, right?  So if someone has a drink, a coaster and a table…why wouldn’t they use it?