Atul Gawande: Better: A Surgeon's Notes on Performance

In 2009, the author wrote this in the New Yorker: McAllen has another distinction, too: it is one of the most expensive health-care markets in the country. Only Miami—which has much higher labor and living costs—spends more per person on health care. In 2006, Medicare spent fifteen thousand dollars per enrollee here, almost twice the national average. The income per capita is twelve thousand dollars. In other words, Medicare spends three thousand dollars more per person here than the average person earns. See that New Yorker piece here. In the video below, the author's giving a talk that involves the topics and subjects of his book, at large, at Google's corporate campus (part of the company's "Authors @Google" series). The second video is of an interview of the author by Charlie Rose.

The Tuesday, November 9, 2010 Charlie Rose Conversation with Felix G. Rohatyn

CHARLIE ROSE: Felix Rohatyn is here. He is known as the man who saved New York City when it almost went bankrupt in 1975. For years he was an investment banker. He became the consummate deal maker. He was on the front lines of a new culture that saw the biggest leveraged buyouts of the ‘80s and ‘90s. In 1997, he left the world of finance to become the United States ambassador to France. He writes about all of this in a new memoir. It is called "Dealings, a Political and Financial Life." I am very pleased to have him back at this table. In full disclosure, he is a great friend of mine, and one of the great things we have done in the history of this program is that we went to France when he was ambassador and did a one-hour profile of him there. And, in fact, the way he starts his book is a story he told me on film, which you can see on our website. And secondly, I hope he will remember that this is a book that I said you have to write, and now he has written it. Welcome. FELIX ROHATYN: Thank you. Thank you, always a pleasure. CHARLIE ROSE: You open this book with the scene of you leaving France.

The full Charlie Rose interview as well as the transcript of the discussion can be found here. The New York Times covered the book, and introduced the title and author, as well as his personal story, this way: Felix Rohatyn’s memoir, modestly titled “Dealings: A Political and Financial Life,” is the sort of vaulting success story that makes one yearn for the big-hearted America of the mid-20th century, a less mean and more innocent time when not every career seemed calculated and not every banker was a subject of scorn, and when the country welcomed enterprising immigrants. Find that NYT piece here. The Daily Reckoning, a financial column and blog of sorts, mentioned the author and book as well:

Felix Rohatyn just published his autobiography, Dealings: A Political and Financial Life. He remembers a meeting in 1975 with the then deputy mayor of New York, James Cavanaugh. The city’s finances had so deteriorated that it was not able to issue long-term bonds. (This is a timely reminder of what to expect in 2011: There will be states and cities unable to issue bonds or rollover debt. If the federal government, including the ever-expanding Federal Reserve, does not or cannot fill the gap, scrip will be issued to pay municipal bills and salaries.) Cavanaugh claimed that New York City was running a balanced budget. Rohatyn disagreed. Cavanaugh “breezily” patronized Rohatyn: “I see you don’t know much about municipal finance.” The investment banker who had negotiated the largest merger in American corporate history (ITT and Hartford Insurance Company) shot back: “Mr. Cavanaugh, I may not know much about municipal finance. But I know about bulls**t. And what you’re giving me is pure bulls**t.”

See that DR piece here. See also: Bold Endeavors: How Our Government Built America, and Why It Must Rebuild Now, The Embassy of the Future, The Future of the Transatlantic Defense Community: Final Report of the Csis Commission on Transatlantic Security and Industrial Cooperation in the Twenty-First Century (Csis Panel Report), Biography - Rohatyn, Felix G(eorge) (1928-): An article from: Contemporary Authors.

The Thursday, December 9, 2010 Charlie Rose Conversation with John Wood

CHARLIE ROSE: John Wood is here. He is the founder of Room to Read. It is a nonprofit organization that works to promote literacy in poor countries. Wood started it 10 years ago after leaving his job at Microsoft. Since then Room to Read has built 1,000 schools, established 10,000 local libraries, and funded nearly 9,000 scholarships for young girls. I am pleased to have him here at this table to talk about it. And a remarkable achievement on the cover of this book -- leaving Microsoft to change the world. Bill Clinton says "Just think what would happen if a couple of hundred people followed his example." What did he mean? What would they be following if they followed your example? JOHN WOOD: My example I think was seeing a problem, finding a great unmet need trying to go out and fill it. And in this case the lack of books for kids all over the developing world.

Read the full transcript of the interview, here.

In 1998, John Wood was a rising executive at Microsoft when he took a vacation that changed his life. What started as a trekking holiday in Nepal became a spiritual journey and then a mission: to change the world one book and one child at a time by setting up libraries in the developing world. He was soon driven to leave his career with only a loose vision of the change he wanted to bring to the world. John made the unlikely marriage between Microsoft business practices and the world of non-profits to create Room to Read, an organization that has created a network of over 7,500 libraries and 830 schools throughout rural and poor communities in Asia and Africa. The organization is now one of the fastest growing, most effective, and award-winning non-profits of the last decade. John has been recognized in the worldwide media as a "21st century Andrew Carnegie," building a public library infrastructure to help the developing world break the cycle of poverty through the lifelong gift of education.

See Leaving Microsoft to Change the World for the full story.

The December 17, 2010 Charlie Rose Conversation with Stephen Cohen

CHARLIE ROSE: Joseph Stalin’s reign of mass terror on the Soviet Union has been called the "other Holocaust." Millions of men, women, and children perished in his vast web prison and slave labor camps which Solzinitzin called "The Gulag Archipelago." Millions of others though somehow survived and were freed after Stalin’s death in 1953. A new book by an NYU professor and Russian scholar Stephen Cohen tells the stories of these survivors that is called "The Victims’ Return." I’m pleased to have Stephen Cohen back at this table. Welcome. / STEPHEN COHEN: Thank you, happy to be back.

Read the full transcript here. The Moscow Times had this to say about the book:

As historian Stephen Cohen shows with sharp analysis and deep pathos in his new book, “The Victims Return: Survivors of the Gulag After Stalin,” the question of what to do with the gulag’s victims, and the legacy of the man who put them there, did not end with their liberation. It has continued to haunt Russia for decades, along with ever-changing interpretations of how the country should address its own past. Memoirs by Solzhenitsyn and other gulag survivors, as well as recent best-selling studies such as Orlando Figes’ “The Whisperers,” have familiarized Western audiences with accounts of the gulag. But Cohen, a professor at Princeton University, is one of the first to focus on survivors’ experiences after their release. “The Victims Return” draws on literary journals, memoirs and interviews with former inmates Cohen befriended in the ’70s to survey individual experiences of post-gulag life. At the same time, it analyzes the political decisions at the top that shaped them.

Read that Moscow Times piece here.

Charlie Rose's Friday, October 22, 2010 Conversation with Steven Rattner

CHARLIE ROSE: Steve Rattner is here. He was the leader of President
Obama’s taskforce on restructuring the automobile industry in the wake of
the financial crisis. That effort became the largest government
intervention in industrial America since World War II. Steve writes about
this experience and more in "Overhaul: An Insider’s Account of the Obama
Administration’s Emergency Rescue of the Auto Industry." I am pleased to
have him back on this program. He used to be the chairman of the board of
Channel 13, our sponsoring station here. He’s a long time friend of mine
and supporter of this program. And I should say that to you in full
disclosure and I’m deeply appreciative of the support of Channel 13 and
Steve for this program. Having said that, let’s talk about you.

Check out the full and entire interview here, at CharlieRose.com

The Thursday, October 21, 2010 Charlie Rose Conversation with Dana Milbank

CHARLIE ROSE: Dana Milbank is here. He is a veteran political
reporter and columnist for "The Washington Post." He is also the author of
a new book on Glenn Beck called "Tears of a Clown -- Glenn Beck and the Tea
Bagging of America."

Over the past few years Beck, a well-known cable television host, has
become a leader in the modern conservative movement. In August he hosted
the restoring honor rally in Washington D.C. which attracted hundreds of
thousands of attendees. I’m pleased to have Dana Milbank back on this
program. Welcome.

Dana Milbank believes that Beck is dangerous. See the full interview here. See also: Homo Politicus: The Strange and Scary Tribes that Run Our Government, Smashmouth: Two Years in the Gutter with Al Gore and George W. Bush, O is For Obama: An Irreverent A-to-Z Guide to Washington and Beltway Politics

Charlie Rose's Thursday, October 21, 2010 Conversation with Robert Gottlieb - author of “Sarah: The Life of Sarah Bernhardt” -

CHARLIE ROSE: Robert Gottlieb is back. His publishing career spans
50 years. During that time has been editor in chief of Simon and Schuster,
Alfred A. Knopf, and "The New Yorker" magazine. He is, as you know, a
writer. His new book "Sarah -- the Life of Sarah Bernhardt" is the first
in Yale’s Jewish Lives series.

Bernhardt, also known as "The Divine Sarah," was once the most famous
actress in the world. I’m pleased to have Robert Gottlieb back at this
table. Welcome.

ROBERT GOTTLIEB: Charlie, thanks.

CHARLIE ROSE: What is this series about?

ROBERT GOTTLIEB: It is about Jewish lives, which is why it’s called
"Jewish Lives."

CHARLIE ROSE: But Yale initiated it?

ROBERT GOTTLIEB: Yes. A very benign person gave him a considerable
amount of money to launch this series and pay for it generously so that
they could hire sign on the writers it they wanted.

CHARLIE ROSE: And they signed on you to do this?

ROBERT GOTTLIEB: They did.

See: http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/11255. See also: Food Justice (Food, Health, and the Environment), Reading Dance: A Gathering of Memoirs, Reportage, Criticism, Profiles, Interviews, and Some Uncategorizable Extras, George Balanchine: The Ballet Maker, Charlie Rose with Peter Whybrow; Robert Gottlieb; Terence Ward (March 18, 2005)

Charlie Rose's Thursday, October 21, 2010 Conversation with with Robert Gottlieb

CHARLIE ROSE: Robert Gottlieb is back. His publishing career spans
50 years. During that time has been editor in chief of Simon and Schuster,
Alfred A. Knopf, and "The New Yorker" magazine. He is, as you know, a
writer. His new book "Sarah -- the Life of Sarah Bernhardt" is the first
in Yale’s Jewish Lives series.

Bernhardt, also known as "The Divine Sarah," was once the most famous
actress in the world. I’m pleased to have Robert Gottlieb back at this
table. Welcome.

Watch the full and complete interview here.

Charlie Rose's Thursday, October 21, 2010 Conversation with Robert Reich

CHARLIE ROSE: Robert Reich is here. He is professor of public policy
at the University of California, Berkeley. He was the secretary of labor
under President Clinton from 1993 until 1997.

"TIME" magazine named him one of the ten most successful cabinet
members of the 20th century. He’s also written 12 books. The latest is
"Aftershock -- the Next Economy and America’s Future." It says that wealth
disparity between the rich and middle class lead to both the Great
Depression and the recent economic crisis.

I’m pleased to have Robert Reich back on this program. Welcome.

Check out the full interview here, in its entirety.

Charlie Rose's Wednesday, October 20, 2010 conversation with Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House of Representatives

CHARLIE ROSE: Nancy Pelosi is here. She is the speaker of the House
of Representatives. The Democrats face an uphill battle in the upcoming
midterm elections. The struggling economy continues to be one of the more
important issues for voters and has made 2010 a very tough time.

Republicans, increasingly confident that they can take back the House,
which would imperil Speaker Pelosi’s position. Democrats are cautiously
optimistic they can retain control of the Senate but there are very close
races in very interesting places. GOP candidates are also ahead in the
gubernatorial races. Several factors, including the independent vote,
turnout, and money will shape the outcome.

The results could profoundly impact the legislative agenda and
political map of the country. I’m pleased to have Nancy Pelosi back at
this table. Welcome.

Read the full transcript here. View the full interview here. See also: Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the New American Politics, Friends of God: A Road Trip with Alexandra Pelosi, Nancy Pelosi Prank Gag Toilet Paper

Charlie Rose - Ingrid Betancourt from YouTube - CharlieRose's Channel by CharlieRose

Ingrid Betancourt discusses her memoir 'Even Silence has an End - My Six Years of Captivity in the Colombian Jungle,' the book chronicles Betancourt's six years as a hostage of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia known as FARC www.CharlieRose.com

Watch the video on YouTube. Or check CharlieRose.com for the full interview. This article's utterly depressing. If you're feeling sick about having to pay bills or getting dumped, read it, and you'll feel lucky.

Charlie Rose's Wednesday, October 13, 2010 Conversation with with Isabel Wilkerson

CHARLIE ROSE: Isabel Wilkerson is here. In 1994 she became the first
African-American woman to win a Pulitzer Prize in journalism. Her new book
"The Warmth of Other Suns," was 15 years in the making. It chronicles one
of the great untold stories of American history, the decades-long migration
of black citizens who fled the south for northern and western cities in
search of a better life.

I am very pleased to have Isabel Wilkerson at this table to talk about
this extraordinary, epic story. It is almost like if there’s a great story
waiting to be told, sometimes there’s a convergence with the perfect author
to write that story, and here it is in this book, "The Warmth of Other
Suns." So, welcome.

ISABEL WILKERSON: Thank you, great to be here.

Read the full transcript here. See the full interview here. See also: The Grace of Silence: A Memoir

Charlie Rose's Wednesday, October 13, 2010 Conversation with David Grossman

CHARLIE ROSE: David Grossman is here. He’s one of Israel’s
preeminent authors. He writes both fiction and nonfiction. His novel "Sea
under Love" explored the Holocaust through the eyes of a child. In "The
Yellow Wind" he reported on life in the occupied territories in the late
1980s.

When the Intifada broke out in 1988, his bestselling book was called
"Prophetic." His latest novel has just been published in the United States.
It is called "To the End of the Land." I am pleased to have David Grossman
back at this table. Welcome.

Read the full transcript here. Watch the full interview here. See also: The Yellow Wind: With a New Afterword by the Author, See Under: LOVE: A Novel, Someone to Run With: A Novel, Writing in the Dark: Essays on Literature and Politics

Charlie Rose's Wednesday, September 15, 2010 Conversation with Annie Cohen-Solal

CHARLIE ROSE: Annie Cohen-Solal is here. She is a writer, and a
teacher and a culture historian. In 1985 she made a name for herself when
she published "Sartre, a Life," a well-regarded biography of the famous
French philosopher. She then arrived in New York in 1989 as a cultural
counselor to the French embassy.

Then she met art gallery legend Leo Castelli. He became her mentor
and her friend different. She’s now written a biography about him called
"Leo and his Circle, the Life of Leo Castelli." I’m very pleased to have
Annie Cohen-Solal back at this table. Welcome.

Watch the interview here. See also: Jean-Paul Sartre: A Life (Lives of the Left), Painting American: The Rise of American Artists, Paris 1867-New York 1948, Charlie Rose with Raymond Kelly; Edward Said; Annie Cohen-Solal (November 20, 2001)

Charlie Rose's Monday, September 13, 2010 conversation with Andrew Ross Sorkin, The New York Times

CHARLIE ROSE: Tuesday marks the second anniversary of the fall of
Lehman Brothers, the event that helped create the deepest recession since
the Great Depression. In July President Obama signed into law
comprehensive financial regulation to prevent the next economic crisis, but
worries about rising unemployment and the threat of a double dip recession
have taken precedence, leading to the midterm elections.

In a move to stimulate the economy President Obama’s proposed
extending the Bush tax cuts to individuals makes less than $250,000.

Watch the full interview here, and download the transcript here.

Charlie Rose's Tuesday, September 7, 2010 conversation with Tony Blair, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

CHARLIE ROSE: Tony Blair was elected prime minister of Britain three
times. In 1997 at the age of 43 he led the Labour Party to a stunning
landslide victory. He created New Labour, which made the Labour Party a
formidable force.

Blair was a centrist with a vision of a third way that focused on
social justice and free market capitalism. He forged close relationships
first with President Clinton and then with President Bush.

His most significant decision by far was supporting the U.S.-led
invasion of Iraq. He has come to understand the controversy of that
decision and reaffirmed the convictions that led to it.

Since leaving office in 2007, he has led a full and engaged life. He
converted to Catholicism, he established the Tony Blair Faith Foundation to
promote interreligious dialogue. He teaches at Yale University. He is a
consultant to a number of private enterprises around the world.

Here's the full interview, and here's the transcript. See also: New Britain: My Vision Of A Young Country, Tony Blair: Prime Minister, Decision Points

Charlie Rose's Monday, August 23, 2010 feature about, and with Tony Judt

CHARLIE ROSE: Tony Judt, a prominent historian and public intellectual
died of ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease on August 6. He was 62 years old.

Although in some places he was known for his controversial views on Israel,
he saw himself not as a polemicist, but as a teacher and a historian. He
authored or edited 13 books, including the work for which he became a
Pulitzer Prize finalist, "Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945." Last
year, Judt was awarded the George Orwell prize for intelligence, insight,
and conspicuous courage. Over the years he was a great friend of this
program as a guest and a guest host.

In September of 2008, Tony Judt was diagnosed with ALS. It is an
affliction that he described as progressive imprisonment without parole.
Over the past 18 months, he dictated dozens of essays and op-eds, wrote two
books, and delivered from memory his last lecture to an auditorium of NYU
students. His words that night were recently turned into his last book.
It is a petition for the future, a rallying cry for renewing social
democracy.

See the full, emotional CR piece here. See also: Ill Fares the Land, Reappraisals: Reflections on the Forgotten Twentieth Century

Charlie Rose's Tuesday, August 17, 2010 conversation with Harold Ford

CHARLIE ROSE: Harold Ford Jr. is here. He began his political career
at the age of 26 when he succeeded his father in the United States House of
Representatives, representing Tennessee’s ninth district in 1997 to 2007.
In the fall of 2006, he lost a closely contested race for the U.S. Senate
to Bob Corker.

Ford now lives in New York City and serving as chairman of the
Democratic Leadership Council and written a book about his life in politics
called "More Davids than Goliaths -- a Political Education." I’m pleased
have him back at this table. Welcome.

See the entire interview here, and read the full transcript here.

Charlie Rose's Friday, August 13, 2010 conversation with Author Christopher Hitchens

CHARLIE ROSE: Christopher Hitchens is an English-born, Oxford-
educated writer and journalist who has lived and worked in Washington for
many years. He is well known for his wit, his sharp arguments and strong
opinions on religion, politics and especially the war in Iraq. David
Brooks of "The New York Times" says "There are few people in this country
who bring such a literary perspective to political and policy
controversies." And here is what his friend Martin Amis said on this
program this week.

Check out the full length conversation and interview here. The transcript can be found here. See also: God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything, The Portable Atheist: Essential Readings for the Nonbeliever, Letters to a Young Contrarian (Art of Mentoring)

Charlie Rose's Wednesday, August 11, 2010 conversation with Author Martin Amis

CHARLIE ROSE: Martin Amis is here. At just 24 he published his debut
novel "The Rachel Papers." He was quickly branded the enfant terrible of
literary England and established a career rivaling that of his famous
father Kingsley Amis.

Almost 40 years and 20 books later, Martin Amis is now 60 and he’s
going strong. Ron Charles of the "Washington Post" says "There’s not a
smarter, cleverer writer alive than Martin Amis." "The Pregnant Widow" is
his twelfth novel. I’m pleased to have him here back at this table.

And there’s also this in the beginning of the book, "The death of the
contemporary forms of social order are to gladden rather than trouble the
soul. Yet what is frightening is that the departing world leaves behind it
not an heir, but a pregnant widow. Between the death of the one and the
birth of the other, much water will flow by, a long night of chaos and
desolation will pace." Alexander Person -- from that you chose this title.

Check the full interview out here, and the transcript out here. See also: Money: A Suicide Note (Penguin Ink) (The Penguin Ink Series), The Rachel Papers