Last Book: Is Math Real? - Eugenia Chang
Reading: The Greeks, A Global history - Roderick Beaton
I would recommend both if either subject interests you.
“Is Math Real?” is a really fun book, and gives the brain a lot to chew on. It asks the “stupid questions” of math and explains why they aren’t so stupid.
“The Greeks” is incredibly well written and researched, and goes into many details that aren’t well known about Greek history. This is a subject that has always interested me because of my heritage, and I have learned a lot.
Would you care to share any examples of the math questions?
I can give you the first one!
The book opens up with “Why does 1 + 1 = 2?”, and goes on to explain an answer to the question, including ways where “1 + 1 != 2” and why.
The last book I read was Monstrous Regiment, a Discworld book that had somehow slipped past me.
It was pretty good. It’s more or less a stand alone book in the setting with some minor cameos by established characters. There is one conceit that the book runs on, which you’ll likely catch onto early, but it manages to mix up how it uses that conceit to keep it fresh enough. The ending big action set piece is contrived even for Discworld action, but the book really isn’t about the action anyway so it gets a pass. B+ book, one of the lesser Discworld books which still puts it way above most other books.
Such an awesome universe.
Last book: Murderbot Diaries - Network Effect by Martha Wells
Current book: Daring Greatly by Brene Brown
The first book is really fun. Lot’s of action and witty characters with a lot of development.
The second book might change your life. It made me realize just how much emotion I’ve not been letting myself feel for the last two decades.
The Neverending Story by Michael Ende
100%
Finished the fifth wheel of time book last week, about done with the sixth. They are awesome books. I cant wait till the main characters start fucking things up. Its coming… i can feel it in my bones with every page.
Jesus the rings of fire and death at the end. 5 outta 7 for that book right there. God i wish the show wasnt canceled.
Last book I finished was Hail Mary by Andy Weir. Solid read, get it done before the movie comes out.
About to start the Kaiju Preservation Project by John Scalzi, no idea on that one yet, but Scalzi does good work in general.
Last one I can’t reccomend is The Book of Elsewhere by China Miéville and Keanu Reeves. I’m a big fan of the BRZRKR comics so I jumped at the chance for a novel in that universe… aaand it’s largely unreadable. :(
Last was war and peace, would recommend.
Currently “reading” Wisconsin • Minnesota | Midwest Bouldering Guidebooks to plan for an upcoming trip to devils lake. If you plan to go climbing there the book is awesome if not it would still be cool to page through if you are interested in climbing.
Last book: Children of ruin. I didnt really like this one, while i was in awe of the brilliance of Children of time.
Currently reading a non-fiction book called The genius of birds. I already knew from direct experience how smart birds are, including ones that people perceive as dumb, like pigeons. But this book really gives a different perspective in how birds are complex creatures that adapt to their environments in intelligent ways, and how other birds will instantly copy these novel ways.
I just finished Jonathan Maberry’s Kagen the Damned trilogy. If you’re into epic fantasy it’s a good read.l, even if feels a little rushed in places and the short chapters irked me slightly.
Now I’m starting How to Survive in Ancient Rome by Robert Garland.
Last book: The Apothecary Diaries 6 by Natsu Hyūga
Current book: The Magic Engineer by L.E. Modesitt Jr
The Apothecary Diaries series has been pretty good so far. Enough quirky characters and situations to not get to dark, but some definite darkness so it doesn’t get to sweet.
The Magic Engineer is the third in The Saga of Recluse series. Overall I enjoy Modesitt, but it also is clearly a cheap paperback fantasy from the 90s. It’s fun tracking down these second hand and they are fun reads. However, I enjoyed the first 3 books in his Imager series more.
Last book : the wheel of time (#5) by R. Jordan. I don’t really recommend. I mean the story’s great but the way the characters are written is dull and sexist (men saying that women are mysteries, women complaining about how men are dumb and other ridiculous clichés), it feels like following people that are somewhat the worse of both teens and boomers, it takes me out of the book every single time. I prefer the king killer chronicles (P. Rothfuss) although we’re still waiting for the last book.
Current book : Trapped (C. Lackberg and H Fexeus) it is a great polar, with nice twists, I recommend!
I could only just get through Name of the Wind many years ago. As I was reading it something just felt off and was bothering me massively, I then came to the realisation that the main character (Kvothe) was just too perfect. His flaws were the world around him, not himself, and really the only fault that could be considered was that he was so good at everything he would do too much and get burnt out.
Is the second book better, and would you say it’s worth reading given the third one is nowhere in sight?
That’s interesting. I didn’t feel that way so I’m probably not the best to say whether it changes in book 2. It probably doesn’t as both felt like a fairly coherent story with an homogeneous approach. Anyone else felt that Kvothe was too perfect and would be able to enlighten us about whether it gets better in book 2?
If you like heroes that make mistakes and aren’t perfect (which completely makes sense btw) maybe you’d enjoy the Dresden files by J. Butcher (low urban fantasy in which you follow a mage in Chicago).
Currently I’m not reading anything but listening to the Magnus protocol podcast (which I highly recommend, but you should start with the Magnus Archives). It’s a horror podcast, where each episode a character is reading a horror story that happened to someone, and in the long run stuff starts to happen with the characters who are reading.
Before starting that I read some of the Dexter books, honestly? The TV show is WAAAAY better, the first book is very similar to the first season, but then it goes off the rails, to the point where there are supernatural entities in the books, not to mention the absolutely horrible Spanish from the author, in one book he a character realizes someone knows he’s there because he gets a happy birthday card, except the card says “Feliz Navidad” (Merry Christmas).
I am reading Moon Zappa’s autobiography, I just finished 1000 Acres by Jane Smiley, which I REALLY recommend, and I’m also reading the collected Wendell Berry, Margaret Atwood’s latest short story collection Babes In The Woods, and the book about the Toronto Gay Village murders. All very good, I am decidedly not into true crime but it happened close to me and one of my friends was part of the Village and they told the cops several times that people were going missing. I feel awful for all the victims, but especially for the very closeted religious ones whose wives and children got to find out their fathers were queer because they found parts of them in a planter, and the whole world got to find out too. It’s not nice to posthumously out someone even under the circumstances when it will have such a profound effect on their families.
Last read was Closing Time by Joseph Heller. It’s the sequel to Catch 22, and while not quite as dazzling as that book, I still really enjoyed it, and found some of the writing hilarious and/or deeply moving. It’s got a bit of a poor reputation, but it’s excellent IMO.
Have just started reading Colourless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage by Haruki Murakami - only a few chapters in, but I’m enjoying it. I’ve read quite a lot of HM’s work, so the style is enjoyably familiar. Also, it came with some cool stickers inside for some reason 😁
Listened to the audiobook version of Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson. I’d read it long ago and was surprised how differently I experienced listening to it. Recommended.
Currently finishing a read of the (British) Rough Guide to Cult Pop (2004) … a book about pop/rock music and its makers from the 50s forward to to 20 years ago. Broken up into many sections, put together by a crew of Brit-wits, many interesting facts and stories about a half-century of chart hits. Strong recommend IF you’re into that sort of thing, appreciate a bit-o-snark, and know most of the names already (or want to).
