Hi all,
Let's catch up a little bit on what I read last month.
Let's catch up a little bit on what I read last month.
*Eternal Echoes by John
O'Donohue (7/1)
A great read. O'Donohue (1) explores two general ideas- longing and belonging- and the result is a work filled with a deep yet accessible wisdom about the many ups and downs that life throws at the soul.
There were many concepts that I very much enjoyed. One talked about 'know-how'- the mechanical understanding of how things operate- and speculated that too much emphasis on mastery of these topics will eventually blunt the cutting edge of our own creativity and limit the possibility of what an individual can bring forth.
Another criticized consumerism, declaring it 'the obesity of the mind and spirit' for its penchant to make it seem like one will never 'have enough'. He also points out its nature to transform our desire for celebration into a product for purchase. To make the point, O'Donohue points out the absurdity of placing valuable art into a vault to protect its 'value'- in so doing, the act that creates value in the first place, viewing, become impossible for all but a select few.
I think the concept that will remain with me from this work is his reflection on how suffering pulls us away from our false belongings. The one who suffers constantly works uphill and the toil makes it impossible to 'keep up appearances' in those places where one does not truly feel the sense of belonging. When ready, the act of withdrawal from those false places leaves only the truest places in which one can once again belong.
*Hope In The Dark by Rebecca Solnit (7/5)
Every once in a while, you read two hundred and ten pages of a book and realize that only ten of the words you just read have any value to you. This happened the last time I read one of Solnit's books, Men Explain Things to Me. In that work, I read that the strongest evidence of an accepted rape culture is when potential victims are told to change their behavior- carry whistles, never walk alone, stay inside after dark, etc- while the potential offenders are told nothing. I remember those words now anytime I see victim blaming in any context. And when I try to think back to the other things I read about, my mind draws a total blank.
In Hope In The Dark, Solnit writes that homelessness expanded greatly during the Reagan administration. I remember these words now anytime I walk through the park. And although I remember this particular book being an excellent read throughout, I struggle even a month later to recall much else from it (2).
*I Wear The Black Hat by Chuck Klosterman (7/6)
Klosterman's essay collection about villains falls into the 'if you like him, you'll like this' category. He defines a villain as someone who 'knows the most and cares the least' and more or less goes from there (though it would be untrue if I said he kept coming back to this idea throughout).
*Still Alice by Lisa Genova (7/7)
As I wrote on August 9, I thought this book was very good.
*Brady vs. Manning by Gary Myers (7/11)
This was worth a read if you are the type to sit down and watch an NFL game when there is nothing else going on (3). There is good stuff in here about both quarterbacks and I found it almost a perfect fit for the light reading needed before turning out the lights for the night.
The writing was disappointing. Some sentences seemed to come out of left field (or the back of the end zone, I suppose, if a helmet football analogy is required). I thought more than once that perhaps the writer had some kind of agenda to push yet struggled to identify what that could be. By the end of the book, I concluded that the content was simply being emphasized much more so than the writing quality.
*But What If We're Wrong by Chuck Klosterman (7/21)
Above, I referenced how Reagan came up as a topic in Rebecca Solnit's Hope In The Dark. Klosterman's most recent book also mentions Reagan. As part of his research for the book, he speaks to or interviews a number of thinkers in various fields. And wouldn't you know it, Dan Carlin (he of two of those podcasts I list in my monthly power rankings) is among those thinkers.
What I found most interesting in their talk about Reagan was how he was objectively not a very good president yet is very well perceived by many since his time in office was one in which people (presumably those not directly impacted by his policy decisions) felt very good about their lives in general (I think the word used was 'prosperous').
Klosterman interviews a number of names I am familiar with from reading, including Malcolm Gladwell (they talk about helmet football) and George Saunders (it was good to see get involved in a discussion about how writing is perceived over time). I will probably try out something from Junot Diaz in the near future as well (he was cited alongside Saunders as two current writers Klosterman guessed might end up being perceived as the best of our current generation).
On the other hand, perhaps naming specific people disrupts the entire premise of the book- roughly, Klosterman's idea focuses on what we are sure about today that the future will look back on as obviously wrong. Naming specific candidates is right on the edge of the premise- how can we be wrong if we have ready alternatives for being right? I think he struggles a little bit overall with that problem throughout (he even mentions it himself a couple of times) (4).
This was a good read in its entirety but probably more a fun read than a serious one given his choice to cover a wide range of topics over devoting a book-length focus to just one or two (5).
*Hackers and Painters by Paul Graham (7/24)
I originally read this 2004 book one year ago (6). It is a series of essays that generally cover startups and computer programming but I think it is accessible to any audience interested in reading a clever fellow dig into various topics (*).
A great read. O'Donohue (1) explores two general ideas- longing and belonging- and the result is a work filled with a deep yet accessible wisdom about the many ups and downs that life throws at the soul.
There were many concepts that I very much enjoyed. One talked about 'know-how'- the mechanical understanding of how things operate- and speculated that too much emphasis on mastery of these topics will eventually blunt the cutting edge of our own creativity and limit the possibility of what an individual can bring forth.
Another criticized consumerism, declaring it 'the obesity of the mind and spirit' for its penchant to make it seem like one will never 'have enough'. He also points out its nature to transform our desire for celebration into a product for purchase. To make the point, O'Donohue points out the absurdity of placing valuable art into a vault to protect its 'value'- in so doing, the act that creates value in the first place, viewing, become impossible for all but a select few.
I think the concept that will remain with me from this work is his reflection on how suffering pulls us away from our false belongings. The one who suffers constantly works uphill and the toil makes it impossible to 'keep up appearances' in those places where one does not truly feel the sense of belonging. When ready, the act of withdrawal from those false places leaves only the truest places in which one can once again belong.
*Hope In The Dark by Rebecca Solnit (7/5)
Every once in a while, you read two hundred and ten pages of a book and realize that only ten of the words you just read have any value to you. This happened the last time I read one of Solnit's books, Men Explain Things to Me. In that work, I read that the strongest evidence of an accepted rape culture is when potential victims are told to change their behavior- carry whistles, never walk alone, stay inside after dark, etc- while the potential offenders are told nothing. I remember those words now anytime I see victim blaming in any context. And when I try to think back to the other things I read about, my mind draws a total blank.
In Hope In The Dark, Solnit writes that homelessness expanded greatly during the Reagan administration. I remember these words now anytime I walk through the park. And although I remember this particular book being an excellent read throughout, I struggle even a month later to recall much else from it (2).
*I Wear The Black Hat by Chuck Klosterman (7/6)
Klosterman's essay collection about villains falls into the 'if you like him, you'll like this' category. He defines a villain as someone who 'knows the most and cares the least' and more or less goes from there (though it would be untrue if I said he kept coming back to this idea throughout).
*Still Alice by Lisa Genova (7/7)
As I wrote on August 9, I thought this book was very good.
*Brady vs. Manning by Gary Myers (7/11)
This was worth a read if you are the type to sit down and watch an NFL game when there is nothing else going on (3). There is good stuff in here about both quarterbacks and I found it almost a perfect fit for the light reading needed before turning out the lights for the night.
The writing was disappointing. Some sentences seemed to come out of left field (or the back of the end zone, I suppose, if a helmet football analogy is required). I thought more than once that perhaps the writer had some kind of agenda to push yet struggled to identify what that could be. By the end of the book, I concluded that the content was simply being emphasized much more so than the writing quality.
*But What If We're Wrong by Chuck Klosterman (7/21)
Above, I referenced how Reagan came up as a topic in Rebecca Solnit's Hope In The Dark. Klosterman's most recent book also mentions Reagan. As part of his research for the book, he speaks to or interviews a number of thinkers in various fields. And wouldn't you know it, Dan Carlin (he of two of those podcasts I list in my monthly power rankings) is among those thinkers.
What I found most interesting in their talk about Reagan was how he was objectively not a very good president yet is very well perceived by many since his time in office was one in which people (presumably those not directly impacted by his policy decisions) felt very good about their lives in general (I think the word used was 'prosperous').
Klosterman interviews a number of names I am familiar with from reading, including Malcolm Gladwell (they talk about helmet football) and George Saunders (it was good to see get involved in a discussion about how writing is perceived over time). I will probably try out something from Junot Diaz in the near future as well (he was cited alongside Saunders as two current writers Klosterman guessed might end up being perceived as the best of our current generation).
On the other hand, perhaps naming specific people disrupts the entire premise of the book- roughly, Klosterman's idea focuses on what we are sure about today that the future will look back on as obviously wrong. Naming specific candidates is right on the edge of the premise- how can we be wrong if we have ready alternatives for being right? I think he struggles a little bit overall with that problem throughout (he even mentions it himself a couple of times) (4).
This was a good read in its entirety but probably more a fun read than a serious one given his choice to cover a wide range of topics over devoting a book-length focus to just one or two (5).
*Hackers and Painters by Paul Graham (7/24)
I originally read this 2004 book one year ago (6). It is a series of essays that generally cover startups and computer programming but I think it is accessible to any audience interested in reading a clever fellow dig into various topics (*).
*Which is obviously going to be the case for anyone reading this blog, of course!
If you are curious about the book
but are not sure about diving in right away, check out the essays on his
website (these are similar in style and content to the chapters in this
book).
I found it interesting at times when I read sections from this book that point at essays he would write in the future. One such case was about income inequality. In short, he wrote that metrics focusing on the gap in rich and poor distract from the most pressing problem of absolute poverty by allowing people the option of addressing the metric by only bringing down the wealth level of the rich. Thus, it is possible to address income inequality without necessarily addressing poverty.
There is a fairly amazing essay in the book that basically predicts the rise of the smart phone. It is not an explicit prediction- rather, he simply walks through his reasoning for why such a thing is almost inevitable (*).
I found it interesting at times when I read sections from this book that point at essays he would write in the future. One such case was about income inequality. In short, he wrote that metrics focusing on the gap in rich and poor distract from the most pressing problem of absolute poverty by allowing people the option of addressing the metric by only bringing down the wealth level of the rich. Thus, it is possible to address income inequality without necessarily addressing poverty.
There is a fairly amazing essay in the book that basically predicts the rise of the smart phone. It is not an explicit prediction- rather, he simply walks through his reasoning for why such a thing is almost inevitable (*).
*That is, at no point does Graham write something extremely specific like, 'by September 2016, half the country will walk around faces buried in hand-held computer devices playing Pokemon, the other half will walk around faces buried in hand-held computer devices commenting on the half of the country playing Pokemon, and one person will use his pointless blog to comment on this phenomenon'.
This approach of articulating the deliberations
that eventually formed his conclusions is the general outline of many of his
essays. I think that way of writing is very suited to what I am looking for at
the moment given how closely it mirrors the way I try to think about many
things. Ultimately, I think gathering the facts and making educated guesses
based on those leads to stronger conclusions than any other method.
*Next month on 'Proper Admin- Books'...
As always, we'll see. I finished Turn by Anne Truitt early in August and might follow up with her two other books. I might also get around to finishing a couple of books I've dragged out through the summer.
One book I just checked out is Seinfeldia by Jennifer Keishin Armstrong. This looks like the ideal 'before bed' book (even better than that football book)- not much focus required, does not matter if I lose my place a little bit, is more or less about nothing. I am looking forward to it.
Thanks as usualfor not
mentioning that I have promised several posts which are clearly not going to go
up on time for reading. See you all on Friday.
Tim
Footnotes
1. John O'Donohue...
*Next month on 'Proper Admin- Books'...
As always, we'll see. I finished Turn by Anne Truitt early in August and might follow up with her two other books. I might also get around to finishing a couple of books I've dragged out through the summer.
One book I just checked out is Seinfeldia by Jennifer Keishin Armstrong. This looks like the ideal 'before bed' book (even better than that football book)- not much focus required, does not matter if I lose my place a little bit, is more or less about nothing. I am looking forward to it.
Thanks as usual
Tim
Footnotes
1. John O'Donohue...
Finishing this book, his third work
that I read, compelled me to check on what he was currently working on. Sadly,
I discovered that he had passed in 2008 at the age of fifty-two. It appears
that one more work of his was published posthumously which might fit my type of
reading (book of essays) but, other than that, the three books I've written
about here are it.
It is so strange to think back to when I picked up Anam Cara, his first work. What was I expecting? Certainly nothing close to what I got from that and from his other two books- an unflinching, truthful testimony to the resiliency of the soul in the face of the challenges presented by isolation and community.
2. The numbers, the numbers, the numbers...
I dida bit of research some
Googling but found no official figures on homelessness pre and post Reagan's
presidency. It makes sense- those numbers are hard to track today so I imagine
doing so three decades ago would be that much harder.
The best I did was this article in which the author suggests honoring Reagan's legacy by naming, instead of airports, schools, and streets, a park bench in every major city after him. People sleep there each night, after all, thanks to some of his actions while in office.
3. Hut hut hut!
I suppose I technically do not fall into this category anymore- it has been over two years since I've watched a football game for the sole reason of having 'nothing else to do'.
4. The Black Swan
Nassim Nicholas Taleb's The Black Swan is often misapplied in a similar way. His book is about how you react and proactively protect against the harmful result of unpredictable shock events. So, anyone who seeks to 'predict' a black swan event is, by definition, not predicting such an event since such events are defined as unpredictable.
5. Next time on True On Average...
I actually have a couple of more thoughts to come that came out of this book. It will link Klosterman's conversation with Carlin to some of my thoughts about Moneyball. Exciting, right?
6. Funny coincidence about Hackers and Painters...
When I checked my book log for this book, I could not find it. It took me a minute to realize I had simply forgot to note it- so I added it to my list for July and estimated the date I finished it.
Then, I checked the log from last year to see when I finished it. And, again- I could not find it. It took me another minute to realize I had forgotten to note it last year, as well.
It is so strange to think back to when I picked up Anam Cara, his first work. What was I expecting? Certainly nothing close to what I got from that and from his other two books- an unflinching, truthful testimony to the resiliency of the soul in the face of the challenges presented by isolation and community.
2. The numbers, the numbers, the numbers...
I did
The best I did was this article in which the author suggests honoring Reagan's legacy by naming, instead of airports, schools, and streets, a park bench in every major city after him. People sleep there each night, after all, thanks to some of his actions while in office.
3. Hut hut hut!
I suppose I technically do not fall into this category anymore- it has been over two years since I've watched a football game for the sole reason of having 'nothing else to do'.
4. The Black Swan
Nassim Nicholas Taleb's The Black Swan is often misapplied in a similar way. His book is about how you react and proactively protect against the harmful result of unpredictable shock events. So, anyone who seeks to 'predict' a black swan event is, by definition, not predicting such an event since such events are defined as unpredictable.
5. Next time on True On Average...
I actually have a couple of more thoughts to come that came out of this book. It will link Klosterman's conversation with Carlin to some of my thoughts about Moneyball. Exciting, right?
6. Funny coincidence about Hackers and Painters...
When I checked my book log for this book, I could not find it. It took me a minute to realize I had simply forgot to note it- so I added it to my list for July and estimated the date I finished it.
Then, I checked the log from last year to see when I finished it. And, again- I could not find it. It took me another minute to realize I had forgotten to note it last year, as well.
