The seventeen traditions
By: Ralph Nader ; illustrations by David Wolf
Edition: 1st ed.
Publisher: HC/HarperCollins
Published: 2007
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 150
ISBN-13: 9780061238277
Subjects: Consumer affairs directors; Values; Family; Jugend; Childhood and youth; Biography
Description: From the Publisher:  By the legendary activist and humanitarian: A surprising and moving look back at a small-town family and the traditions that shaped a childhood. Ralph Nader is known for his lifetime of progressive activism and fearless critique of corruption in American politics and society. Yet in this fresh and inspiring new book, Nader takes a look backward-at a serene and enriching childhood spent in bucolic Winsted, Connecticut, and at the traditions he absorbed within his family. From listening to learning, from patriotism to argument, from work to simple enjoyment, Nader revisits seventeen traditions he learned from his parents, his siblings, and the people in his community, and draws from them inspiring lessons for today's society. Blending memoir and thoughtful inspiration, Nader offers readers a chance to look back on a time in American history when the family and the natural world were central in a child's understanding of how to be a conscientious adult. Among the seventeen traditions he celebrates:  The Tradition of Listening; The Tradition of Charity; The Tradition of Civics; The Tradition of Work; The Tradition of Patriotism and The Tradition of Simple Enjoyment. In his warmest and most personal writing to date, Nader fondly describes his father's restaurant business and how it taught him about work, community and how to share in the spirits of others; the value of his mother's ethnic cooking and how it defined his relationship with his heritage, and the hours he spent as a child wandering through the undeveloped forests of Connecticut where he learned the value of solitude. In doing so, he reawakens our own memories of the blessings of a simpler time-and of the enduring values of family, community, and love that gave him the courage to lead a meaningful life.
Table of contents: title: Introduction:  Landscape of my boyhood; title: 1:  Tradition of listening; title: 2:  Tradition of the family table; title: 3:  Tradition of health; title: 4:  Tradition of history; title: 5:  Tradition of scarcity; title: 6:  Tradition of sibling equality; title: 7:  Tradition of education and argument; title: 8:  Tradition of discipline; title: 9:  Tradition of simple enjoyments; title: 10:  Tradition of reciprocity; title: 11:  Tradition of independent thinking; title: 12:  Tradition of charity; title: 13:  Tradition of work; title: 14:  Tradition of business; title: 15:  Tradition of patriotism; title: 16:  Tradition of solitude; title: 17:  Tradition of civics; title: Afterword; title: Acknowledgments.