In 2014, I wrote Browsing through My Candy Store, a memoir of my

career attempting to master the art of public policy. That book, though

enjoying modest sales at best, was well received by my colleagues in

the academy, by those members of the public who stumbled upon this

classic, and by so-called book scouts who ferret out literary gems. That

pleased me greatly. My intent was to develop a crossover work that

might bridge both the real and the academic worlds. I tried to avoid

being so technical that the average reader risked being driven into

a deep coma while exploring some serious topics. A comatose like

demeaner is an unfortunate condition too often witnessed among my

university students, especially the undergraduates I taught in earlymorning courses. There are few greater challenges than facing social

work students who wish to be family therapists but are required to

take a policy course to graduate, a topic that they fear involves way too

many numbers.