Basically self-explanatory- I'm restarting the Predator Cities quartet (Hungry City Chronicles for the Americans in the audience) and it's got me wondering what kind of literary tastes you guys have, what books you're reading, etc.
I'm gonna partly ignore the question and use this post as a diary of what I have read since the last thread. In chronological order: Weapons of Math Destruction by Cathy O'Neil. Alternate title: here are a bunch of subjects in which biased, shoddily or maliciously designed systems and algorithms screw over thousands or millions of average Americans. I already knew about it but it's a fun read nonetheless. How Emotions Are Made: The Secret Life of the Brain by Lisa Feldman Barrett. I listen to the Invisibilia podcast, so when they mentioned that their season would take the core idea of this book and run with it, I decided to give the book a shot myself. The author makes the case that our assumptions about what emotions are and how they originate are wrong, and how most of the research on emotions up until recently was based on those false assumptions. She argues that emotions are produced by us (in part by our senses, in part by our habitual responses to said senses) instead of something that happens to us. Which also means that she thinks we're much more in control than we think we are, which has a bunch of consequences for mental illnesses related to emotional wellbeing. However, after her quite interesting argumentation has been laid forth, the book somersaults straight into a bottom-of-the-bargain self-help book. I couldn't finish it because of that, but the first half or so was not bad. The Lonely City by Olivia Laing. As I said in a pubski somewhere, it's 1/3 autobiography, 1/3 biography of artists and 1/3 art analysis. Two of those three were mildly engaging, one of the three I couldn't care less for. Reclaiming Conversation by Sherry Turkle. I should've read this earlier - a phenomenal book about how we interact with technology (mostly: our phones) and how actual, normal conversation can never be replaced by it. While some might write it off as yet another old person lamenting on the decline of younger generations, I think it would be pretty intellectually dishonest to dismiss Turkle's arguments that easily. For me it was an eye-opener that I needed - she describes how more and more people do everything they can to avoid phonecalls or conversations, which was something that I was definitely doing for all the reasons she said I was. I've done a bit of soul-searching since reading this. For one thing, the book made me start calling my mom and my sister more frequently. The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Kondo, which I discussed here. I forgot about her folding technique - the second thing that I now do because of the book. Hiroshima by John Hersey. This book tells the story of six survivors of Hiroshima. A bit on the short side but it is an interesting account of the tragedy. What do you care what other people think? by Richard Feynman. I loved the first half which covers Feynmans' youth and relation with his parents. Much of the second half bored me to tears - it's quite a miracle how a behind-the-scenes of the Challenger crash investigation can be made so utterly boring. De Nieuwe Democratie by Willem Schinkel. This Dutch book was my holiday read. It's a dissection of the Dutch political landscape and everything that's wrong with it. You know how they say that in the U.S., most of the people vote against their economic best interest? Well, imagine what a country would look like when politics is reduced to voting for one's interest, hollow out any ideology, adopt managerial and neoliberal language and you've got the Dutch political system. I knew I wasn't happy with politics but now I know why it's so depressingly disappointing and disenchanting. One thing I do wonder because of that book: is it a requirement for sociologists make up at least three dozen words in one book? He comes up with words like globalism telescope, poverty safari, critical boomerang audiences, mediatizing and paradoxical Englightenmentfundamentalism. By the end I could not stand cursive anymore because I knew that meant he'd pull yet another word out of his ass. Almost forgot! Currently halfway through Tony Judt's Postwar. One of the most fascinating books I've read, with enough insight to keep me more than entertained for the 1000 pages that it is. I mean, he relates the Lucky Luke cartoons of my youth to the American image portrayed in the years 1950-1960s. What more could I want. Excluding Postwar, that's about 1500-2000 pages in 2,5 months. I don't think I've ever read this many non-study books in such a short amount of time.
Active reads: I've (re)started Das Kapital from the beginning, and am at the start of the third chapter. I gave up on the book the first time because I was reading it as a pdf with teeny tiny scrunched up text on my Kindle: not exactly an ideal format. I'm a third of the way through White Trash. Need to make progress on it, 'cause I didn't read much last week and the library wants it back soonish. Suspended Reads: I got halfway through Wealth of Nations and put it down. Will probably pick it back up once I finish White Trash? I also still want to finish War and Peace.
I'm also going to try and trudge through Durant soon. Especially if I pass my quals next week. I also might make an attempt on Piketty's Capital, but I expect to have some trouble chewing. Cheers!
Durant isn't a trudge, though. At least as far as I read it. It's long, daunting, a bit too polite when it comes to euphemisms, but I can't say it's hard to read. Though I am more than aware how funny those words will seem once I get to the French Revolution. Authors are honest-to-god fans of France. It's volume 1 and remarks about French archaeologist/museum/historian/linguist/discovery would almost make you think that other countries had been just sitting on their arses while le France! was doing everything.
Currently: Heretics of Dune (book #5 in the Dune Chronicles). Destination: Void, also by Frank Herbert (but a different series). The Book of Mark from the New Testament.
Dune is by far my favorite fiction series of all time. I re-read the first book at least once a year (and bought the Folio Society's amazing edition awhile back). The religious thinking that underlies parts of it is pretty amazing. Random question, related to that: do you have an English version of the Qu'ran that you'd recommend? I've read some of A. J. Arberry's translation, which I've heard is stylistically good but not the best in terms of accuracy. Learning Quranic Arabic is on my to-do list, but I've got another language (which I've only just started) to finish first.
quran.com is a good place to start because it has multiple translations you can consult and a literal translation if you hover over the Arabic words. I want to note that a lot of the punctuation symbols you'll see in the Quran are only relevant if you want to work on tajweed, the "proper" way to read the Quran out loud. Since the tajweed notation basically turns the Quran into a sort of musical sheet (for lack of a better term) it's better if you save that until you're on good footing with the language, if you want to learn it.
Ok, that's perfect. Having a mouse-over definition can really help. Thanks, I'll bookmark it for when I get there. Pronunciation-wise, as long as I have the basic letters down, that'll be good for now. As you say, that could be an interesting addition, though!
I can only imagine that's even more difficult than regular old Arabic. Godspeed my son! You're a sucker for punishment.Learning Quranic Arabic is on my to-do list
I don't think it will be. Modern Standard Arabic is based in large part on the text of the Qu'ran, and is basically the literary and more "official" language (e.g. of newscasts and the like), and my differ a fair amount from what you hear on a streetcorner. Fluent speaking is by far the hardest part of learning a language, and that's not something I'm trying to do. Being able to recognize, say, a verb form is much easier than having to remember it on your own and then use it properly. Two other factors help. The main thing is that I'm not on a deadline. If it takes me 3 years to learn what a college student would learn in a semester, so what? The other is that the more time you spend learning language, the more you learn to take languages on their own terms, and you stop fighting them. It makes things a lot easier.
A good point! Much easier to develop receptive skills than productive ones, especially reading. It also seems like people retain those skills for much longer - I know a lot of people who studied French in school years ago and couldn't get beyond "je m'appelle" but can still understand some written bits.Fluent speaking is by far the hardest part of learning a language, and that's not something I'm trying to do. Being able to recognize, say, a verb form is much easier than having to remember it on your own and then use it properly.
Exactly. Right now direct communication isn't my goal, so I can take the easier route. This has an added benefit of allowing me to learn on my own schedule, and not be subject to when a class (or even just another person) may be able to meet.
Just finished Gork the Teenage Dragon. The 3.1/5 rating on Goodreads is valid. No better than that Before that I read Meddling Kids which was both better and excellent. Next I will be rereading Bks 1-3 of King's Dark Tower and then finishing the series. Thanks library card! In short: unabashed trash, but it's enjoyable.
I just finished Dead Zone the other day. Holy shit it scares me. Not sure if King was on an Aldous Huxley-style logic binge a la Brave New World when he wrote that, or if he really is just a see, but parts if it are so spot on with DJT that your jaw drops. Good sorry besides that, but I couldn't believe what I was reading at times.
I'm taking a break from non-fiction at the moment. Right now I've got Boneshaker on Audible and it's been really enjoyable so far. Steampunk has always been my jam to one degree or another.
People like Sam Harris because he sounds smart. There are a few interesting conversations on his podcast but when it came down to important (geopolitical) issues I always got the sense that his fundamentals were wrong. You might want to read this thread:
This was the reason I was careful with him from the beginning. Many of my friends seem to listen to his podcasts and read his books. One day, a good friend send me an article that talks about Islam, the middle east and how the west should approach the situation (found it!). This was my answer to her when she asked me to comment it: Europe and the United States are the cause (yes, the cause) of the current state of terror in the world. Their interventions in the Middle East lead to the issue we have now. And this guy suggests more intervention by strengthening the people that need our help (how? More weapons probably). Islam is a religion that needs reform, that is true. Reform was happening and people we're changing, slowly! Iran or Palestine in the 70s was more liberal than now, because change was happening and coming from the people. Now however, Europe and the states messed up the region, invading, changing systems etc. and always selling it as "for the good of the people" while in reality they produced a vacuum that can only be filled by populists locally. And with the same trick they continue on doing so. Have a look at the oil prices and you will know that this strategy was very successful 🙂 I don't know what solution there is. All I know is that they should stand up and say "we fucked up, we have to take in any refugee that comes because we OWE them that". At least that is my opinion Right now, in the book, he is shit-talking every religion for similar reasons as to why I left Islam. As long as he sticks to the science of consciousness without trying to explain to me how the middle east works, I guess it is fine.Just commenting this piece. I am not sure if this guy is just writing what the president of the United States should say or if he is just not aware of what the actual truth is.
Pinging Odder, maybe you can better articulate what Harris' fundamentally flawed ideas are? I'll take a stab at it but I don't know enough about the topics he discusses to be certain of my position. (I apologize in advance for the snarky tone.) There's two things which I noticed while reading that piece. One is his eagerness to point to Islam school of thought as the main reason for atrocities. We burned witches because of our medieval believes, so now that Those Scary People burn people with acid it must be because of their medieval belief system. Let's blame that instead of the complicated geopolitical situation, the completely media-aware terrorists hitting weak spots, the economic interests in the area, [insert actual reasons here]. Secondly, as a Man of Science, he thinks that (religious) beliefs are the root of all evil and that it must thus must also be the solution. Thus, he seems to assume that if we change the minds of these morally and politically deprived people, everything will be alright and violence and tribalism will be a thing of the past. Islam, save the world! Of course, he combines it with a healthy dose of superiority, so our set of beliefs are never a problem since they are Enlightened and Secular and Based on Science. I mean, how else can you write something like this without irony:We live in a world in which people reliably get murdered over cartoons, and blog posts, and beauty pageants—even the mere naming of a teddy bear. [...] We want secular, enlightened, liberal Muslims in America.
Waking Up is basically the attempt to find spirituality coming from a rational and scientific point of view. Very interesting read actually. Demian is a book by Hermann Hesse, the same guy that wrote, Siddhartha, Steppenwolf und Narziß and Goldmund. He is very good in telling the stories of people with all of their aspects. In Demian he follows the childhood and puberty of a boy. Usually his books tell parts of his own life and the way he does it is fascinating.
Finished Oliver Twist a little while ago after reading it off and on for the last few months. I enjoyed the book, but found it very slow going for some reason. At the moment, I'm reading Dragon Teeth by Michael Crichton and trying to get myself started on Karen Armstrong's biography of the historical Buddha.
I'm speaking from my own experience as someone who's read a fair few early 20th century books (To Kill a Mockingbird, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, The Parasite by Arthur Conan Doyle, and a few more), these books are kind of slow-going, probably because they were made for an audience with less entertainment options and thus more reason to stick around and read the books to the finish. I like the name, Dragon's Teeth. What's it about? And what's the biography of the Buddha called?Finished Oliver Twist a little while ago after reading it off and on for the last few months. I enjoyed the book, but found it very slow going for some reason.
At the moment, I'm reading Dragon Teeth by Michael Crichton and trying to get myself started on Karen Armstrong's biography of the historical Buddha.
I usually have to take my time with Dickens, but this last one took months. I just couldn't seem to get into a good rhythm with it. Historical fiction about the Bone Wars. It's a previously unpublished manuscript, so it's in need of some editing, but I'm digging it so far. I thought maybe I was forgetting a subtitle or something, but the book's just called Buddha.I like the name, Dragon's Teeth. What's it about?
And what's the biography of the Buddha called?
A lot of Dickens' books were originally serialised, so there's a possibility they were padded out a bit for extra longevity. I've heard so about Great Expectations at least, though I haven't actually read anything of his.
Honestly? Starting out, I was really gung-ho about them. I read a lot of Valiant comics growing up, I've never really been a fan of DC and Marvel has burned me so many times that I'll enjoy their cinematic universe but pretty much ignore their comics with the exception of a few curiosity purchases here and there. That said, my enthusiasm for them has died down a bit over the past two years, but I'm still pretty supportive of them because they still put out a, in my opinion, relatively solid product.
I just finished Dreamland and would officially like to apologise for my complete lack of understanding regarding the US opiate epidemic. I assumed it was slightly worse than our "ice epidemic" here in Oz, which is a non-event but something that pollies love to talk about in the lead up to election time.
Lately I unfortunately haven't been reading at all! Most of my downtime has been eaten up by watching ridiculous amounts of films (I've watched a huge glut of movies from the 20s up to the 60s), and then going to bed late so even my late night reading has taken a massive dive because then I'm too tired to want to read. So I've had three books on hold for several months now. It's not helped by the lack of a good reading place in my house - the sitting room is too open and usually my mother is watching TV in the evening, and I don't have a comfortable chair in my room, so most reading is on my bed which I don't think is actually very good. The first is Poor Green Erin, a collection of German travel writings about Ireland put together and translated by Eoin Bourke. The book is in the pub I work in, so I only ever read a few bits of it when things are quiet, and usually I'm either doing something or chatting to the customers. Still it's very interesting, if a little repetitive - mostly fellas waxing lyrical about the Irish landscape and denouncing landlord absenteeism and the consequent extreme poverty of the native Irish. People remember the Famine but tend today to forget the abject misery in which Irish people lived for hundreds of years before that. One of two books currently sitting by my bedside is Gafa by Ré Ó Laighléis. The title means "caught"; it's a novel about a family in which the son is addicted to heroin and he's blackmailing his father (who's having an affair). It's the third Irish book I've read, and indeed the third in any language other than English. Hence why I'm only halfway through despite its slimness; the extra effort of reading in another language and needing to translate unfamiliar words puts me off. I have another of his books lined up for whenever I do finish it. It's nice to read an original book in Irish - the last I read, Choinnigh do Mhisneach (Keep your Courage), was a translation from Welsh. The first was years ago - Favela, a book written in Irish about the favela in Rio, by a Dutch guy. Yeah... The last is something completely different and I'm surprised I haven't gobbled it up because it's right up my alley. I've just about reached the point in Thor Heyerdahl's Kon-Tiki Expedition where they actually start setting sail across the Pacific. It's time to start reading again! I had been hoping to polish off the 30 or so unread books I have laying around, and have only made a modest rent in them so far.
Mine isn't too great either! I have trouble with a lot of Irish's grammatical quirks (especially the case system, because it's absent or at least invisible in English). Half of the challenge of reading in Irish is getting your hands on the books! There are a few Irish publishers, but books in Gaeilge aren't found in ordinary bookstores. I'm lucky to have a friend in Connemara with a massive collection of books. Gafa is the only Irish book I actually own; I found it in the "Foreign Languages" section of a second-hand bookstore, and when I told the aforementioned friend's mother, she was actually upset that it was found there.
Currently about a third of the way through Barkskins by Annie Proulx and On Killing by Dave Grossman. They're both pretty great for different reasons; the former being super James Michener-esque which I love and the latter brings up many anecdotes, theories and data on mass human violence (or lack thereof) throughout history.
I've finally started the Song of Ice and Fire series. I've been listening to the audio books. Good storytelling. I read The Lost Gate by Orson Scott Card recently. One of the best fantasy/magic books I've read in a long time. Been reading Cold Sassy Tree out loud with my wife in the evenings. It's a story about a kid in 1907 Georgia. It's pretty funny.
Yes and no. The show is a reasonably faithful adaptation at first, but then starts to go in a different direction. A couple of seasons ago they passed where the books end. I've totally given up on the books - GRRM has been saying the next one is "almost done" for years, and I personally don't believe he'll finish the series before he either retires or dies. If it ever happens, I'm going to wait until he's released the whole series and then I'll read them.
I can't really judge that. I never got into the show, only saw bits of the first couple seasons when my old roommate watched them. The books are huge (30 - 40 hours of audio) and have an enormous number of characters. But he does a better job than I expected of keeping the story moving despite the size. I think they're good, maybe not as fantastic as the hype suggests.
Walden. I don't think I'm going to make it to the end, Thoreau's so holier than thou sometimes.
I'm listening to it as I drive to and from home home to school home. There was a huge accident plus construction (plus labor day weekend congestion), and i just had to turn it off at that point because I a.) couldn't focus on it, and b.) couldn't deal with the audio book reader, who has a talent for making Thoreau's words become like those of a petulant child. I have a paper copy too, so I know that it doesn't take that much effort for him to make that happen. Thoreau's sort of a weird figure for me, because he does say a lot of things i agree with, but he then often takes them to a logical extreme before he's happy with them. Plus, it doesn't help that he brags about how little money he spent on his Walden Pond digs, but neglects to mention how much time he spent at Ralph Waldo Emerson's house mooching food and other creature comforts. In fact, he neglects to mention his little cabin was on Emerson's land (He says that he is "squatting", which is a total lie).
Great question :) I, just last night, finished Needful Things, the Stephen King novel. It was quite good, I really enjoyed the setup and the end of Part 1 where Mr. Gaunt's motives are revealed. That was the first King story I've read, and I'm now considering moving onto some of his other works. There were apparently lots of references to his other stories within the town of Castle Rock.
I'm currently in the middle of Rushdie's 'The Satanic Verses'. It's a behemoth of a book, and it's worth the read.
So done with American Psycho. I wanted to be scared by Patrick Bateman, not so irritated by him. I got to yet another chapter where he and his shitty friends were discussing "rules" of clothing, and I wanted to throw my Kindle. Back to A Song Of Ice And Fire for me. I never quite gave it a proper chance the first time I tried to read it, and I'm appreciating it much more the second time around. Granted, I'm only ~150 pages into the first book, but it's so refreshing after reading a bunch of genuinely mediocre fiction (lookin' at you, Neil Gaiman).