"Confessions of a Tax Collector," by Richard Yancey

"Confessions of a Tax Collector: One Man's Tour of Duty Inside the IRS," by Richard Yancey, (New York:Harper Collins; 2004) 364 pages. ISBN 0-06-055560-2.

No one grows up thinking they want a career as a tax collector. The people that end up doing that job get there somehow. This is one man's story of how he came to be a revenue officer for the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS"). In Confessions of a Tax Collector, former drama teacher Richard Yancey answers an recruitment advertisment in a Florida newspaper (remember those) seeking people to work in The Treasury Department. Attracted by the job security and salary, he applies and is recruited. The book traces his career from his employment interview, training, and his early career. Yancey pulls back the curtain on what the IRS was like in the 1990s, to show us how revenue officer collected income tax revenue for the IRS. 

Exposes  by insiders spilling the beans on what its really like working for an organization usually make interesting reading. This book is no exception. If you are interested in working for the IRS, then Yancey's book should be recommended reading, even though the IRS has changed considerably from the way it is depicted in this book. This book's utility is not confined to future agents wanting know what its really like to work for the IRS. Anyone thinking of working in a job that requires managing a caseload (e.g. investigator, insurance examiner/adjuster, etc) would benefit from it: this book reveals the type of work constraints and limitations associated with such work. Yancey also provides engaging and detailed critiques of how he successfully did his job and closed cases. These are first-rate accounts of what is required in jobs that require you to handle a case load. The book also gives an important lesson for all people: Yancey decided that if he was going to do the job of revenue officer, he was going to be the best revenue agent. Success for him was a decision, and was something he worked hard for and achieved. This is a lesson for all people in that no matter how little you enjoy you job, or are embarrassed by it, namely, there is a lot to be said for deciding to be the best at it and doing it exceptionally well. Who knows where it will lead. In Richard Yancey's instance, its led to a careers as a writer.

"Roads: Driving America's Great Highways," by Larry McMurtry

"Roads: Driving America's Great Highways," by Larry McMurtry, (New York: Simon and Schuster; 2000), 206 pages. ISBN 0-684-86884-9.

At the end of the 20th century, Larry McMurtry decided to drive a selection of America's great interstate highways, namely, interstates 10, 40, 70, 80, 90 (the great east-west roads) and interstates 5, 25, 35, 75, and 95 (the north-south roads). There was no other reason than curiosity, just a desire to look around with the realization that as old age approaches, he needed to do it then while he was still able to do so. His approach was to jump on a plane, fly to a location, rent a car, and drive via one of the great interstate highways to his home in Archer City, Texas. The product is a book arranged by journey and highway, each comprising McMurtry's observations, recollections of previous journeys along the same road, his observations, an occasional historical note about the area he's driving through, and a note about any writers that came from that area.

The strength of this book is that it is successful on a number of levels. On one level, its an interesting travel book. Its not like the detailed explorations of backwoods America, like the books of William Least Heat Moon and Annie Proulx; this book is a contemplative narrative of the major migration and freight roads of America. On another level its autobiographical. McMurtry dips into his novelist, screenwriting, and book selling past to explain how cities, roads and life have changed over his lifetime. The book is also a regional literary bibliography. During McMurtry's parallel career as an antiquarian book dealer, he learned about the origins of many authors and the settings of many novels and other books. This knowledge is sprinkled  throughout the book, like seasoning, and adds depth and flavor to his travel story. For example, in the chapter on his trip south through Minnesota, he writes about notable local authors from the past, and books about the region he's observing, such as George W. Featherstonhaugh's A Canoe Voyage Down the Minney-Sotar.  Many of us would not known of this book, and the many other mentioned by McMurtry, if they were not included in these pages. These historical diversions are everywhere in this book, making the book better for them.

This book will be enjoyed by readers that like travel stories, road trips, and autobiographical reflections of a notable American writers.