You may not have heard of rare earths. .They are vital elements to our modern world. In fact they are critical to our national security. They occur in almost all high tech devices such as computer hard drives, electric car motors. night vision glasses, and missile guidance systems. You may be conversant with lithium, which is a key component in batteries. They often have weird names because they are named after the person who discovers them and their application or the place where they are discovered.

Running on Empty was submitted to the 18th Annual Writer's Digest Self Publishing Book Awards. While it didn't win an award it did receive a good rating. The reviewer thought the cover needed improvements  but overall the book got high marks. The following is excerpted from the review. No name was given for the reviewer.

On a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 meaning "poor" and 5 meaning "excellent," Running on Empty was rated 5 for structure and organization and 5 for grammar. The cover was rated 2.

Comment: This book is extremely timely, and I'm glad the author has decided to strike while the iron is hot. There's never been a bigger market for original and incisive material in the fields of energy and energy conservation. I urge the author to continue to retool and market Running on Empty to get the notice it deserves. Greene is obviously a master of the material, and I felt in capable hands all the way through. The writing is clear and punchy (though a bit technical at times for a general readership), and thanks to great organizational tools the text is easy to follow. This book has the best table of contents I've encountered among this year's entries, and that's carried through with excellent non-narrative elements including ample subheadings, accessible illustrations, and a fat glossary. Overall, a strong entry that would benefit from a little update of appearance. Best wishes!