Rediscovering American Values: The Foundations of Our Freedom for the 21st Century

This is a bland and simplistic overview of the ideals that the author, who is president of Amway, considers to be the principles underlying the American concept of freedom. The son of a cofounder of the Amway household cleanser and cosmetics distribution company, DeVos was brought up with a strong belief in Christianity and in the free-enterprise system. Drawing on inspirational anecdotes taken from a cross section of the population, he describes how people have bettered themselves both morally and in their careers by practicing such values as honesty, compassion, self-discipline, initiative, hard work, charity and forgiveness. An unrelenting optimist, DeVos is convinced that people can solve most of their problems by taking personal responsibility. He is opposed to what he considers excessive government regulations and taxes, and he makes the controversial statement that homelessness results from substance abuse, not poverty. And there are dizzying leaps of faith here, such as the author's hope that constructing an Amway plant in China and selling its products there will be ""an important step toward future democracy in that country."" (Sept.)