There Are Places in the World Where Rules Are Less Important Than Kindness, Carlo Rovelli

 

There Are Places in the World Where Rules Are Less Important than Kindness and Other Thoughts on Physics, Philosophy, and the World by Carlo Rovelli

Started: 7/29/2022
Completed: 7/31/2022
Recommendation: Mild Recommendation
Recommended By: Nobody

Words for which I sought help:

Polyphemus -- the name of the cyclops killed by Odysseus

Review:

This is sort of mishmash of topics.  It is a collection of a series of articles.  The thoughts are broad and one must keep in mind that this is a physicist who is trying to understand the world.  This venture into other areas has some hits and some misses.  Rovelli is a rather complex thinking and articulates his thoughts well.  These articles are not meant to be convincing (I think), but seem more like ideas thrown out on the tide of humanity for us to consider.  For that purpose, I can recommend the book.

The Ardent Swarm, Yamen Manai

 

The Ardent Swarm by Yamen Manai hit my eye when I was looking at books by non-American authors.

Started: 7/13/2022
Completed: 7/29/2022
Recommendation: Mild Recommendation
Recommended By: A list of non-English speaking authors whose books were being translated into English

Review:

Pretty much everything is unresolved in this book.  This is a sort of slice of pastoral life in an imagined village in Africa.  The contrast between the "city folk" and the "country folk" seems to have a little bit of "city mouse, country mouse" in it, but it is also a contrast between styles of religious adherence.   As a slice of life, I don't feel like I understand what it is like to live in North Africa any better, but that may be too large a task.  There is supposed to be an allegorical component of the story, but I am too thick to see it except in its most basic forms.  I cannot say I enjoyed it particularly, but there are parts that are compelling and the life of Sidi is certainly interesting.

My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry, Fredrik Backman

 

My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry by Fredrik Backman

Started: 7/26/2022
Completed: 7/29/2022
Recommendation: Mild Recommendation
Recommended By: Nobody

Review:

This book requires one to completely abandon reality in any sense.  Though it appears rooted in reality, the precocious 7 year-old is simply brilliant.  She has read the 8 Harry Potter books in excess of 20 times and reads at a pace that is beyond her very literate father.  Her abilities (she claims to have driven a car) are far outside the ability of a 7 year-old and that makes the book difficult for me.  What's more, everything hinges on the genius of this child, so it is critical to the book that you believe she is this way.  She has also learned a second "secret" language from her grandmother in which she can speak fluently.

Viewing the world through the lens of a fairy tale, however, seems like a good twist.  It just requires this genius child due to the circumstances and a wealth of fairy tells that the child has somehow memorized (while reading all that Harry Potter, and that is not the only book she has read well above her reading level) is just very difficult to believe.  It is necessary to the story, but it keeps dragging me out.  So, I enjoyed the premise of viewing the world through a fairy tale.  I also liked how the child interacts only with adults which makes it much easier to read through the dialog (though that is somewhat stilted on occasion).  The child is the narrator, but the author also describes things the child could not, so there are times when the child-as-narrator slips away.  So there are some big lapses, but this book does get a mild recommendation from me on the basis of the premise.

We Should All Be Feminists, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

 

We  Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Started: 7/26/2022
Completed: 7/26/2022
Recommendation: Highly Recommended
Recommended By: Nobody

Review:

What a great book!  Quick read as it is really short.  This is a compelling argument for being a feminist.

A Great Reckoning, Louise Penny

 

A Great Reckoning by Louise Penny is the next Armand Gamache novel.

Started: 7/19/2022
Completed: 7/26/2022
Recommendation: Recommended
Recommended By: My Parents

Review:

This book returns to Three Pines and provides the explanation for the three trees that gave the village it's name.  That part is pretty wonderful.  The rest, well, I dunno.  I would not really call this book a mystery (though it is), it is more an examination of loss and abuse.  This sounds more unpleasant then it actually is, but be prepared--the road is bumpy.  I can only barely recommend this book as it was hard for me to enjoy significant portions of it.  I truly hope that this is the end of Gamache trying to deal with the corruption he is constantly trying to root out of everywhere he goes.  Unlikely.

Zorrie, Laird Hunt

 

Zorrie by Laird Hunt

Started: 7/18/2022
Completed: 7/19/2022
Recommendation: Mild Recommendation
Recommended By: The New York Times

Review:

The writing is excellent.  The story is humble.  I never built a connection with Zorrie.  It seemed that she was disconnected from herself for most of her life.  This is odd because the NYT reviewer saw this book as a look at connections and community.  I would disagree.  I think that this is a look at someone who does not expect much from life and gets what she expects.  She dodges some bullets and catches others full on, but seems to plod on lonely and alone over so much of the canvas of her life.  I definitely did not enjoy this peek into country life and it doesn't reflect any experience I had in Indiana, so it is truly hard for me to relate.  Hunt does not give one much to grab onto in Zorrie's life experiences or in her perception of the world.  The writing, though, is masterful.

The Nature of the Beast, Louise Penny

 

The Nature of the Beast by Louise Penny is the next in the Armand Gamash books.

Started: 7/14/2022
Completed: 7/18/2022
Recommendation: Highly Recommended
Recommended by: my parents

Review:

Opening with the death of a child was rather horrifying.  In general, however, this was a very interesting novel and brought back some of the joy of the characters of three pines that came from earlier in the series.  There were moments towards the end when I was worried that the whole plot had been lost, but there was a graceful recovery.  In general, I enjoyed the read and found myself smiling at the Tolkien references.

Seven Games, Oliver Roeder

Seven Games:  A human history by Oliver Roeder is an intriguing look at human history through the lens of seven games.

Started: 7/11/2022
Completed: 7/14/2022
Recommendation: Only if you know nothing about these games
Recommended By: Nobody

Review:

This is not a human history.  The history component was largely, "before the twentieth century some games were invented and you will get a little bit about that, but mostly we are going to talk about the current or recent champions."  On the other hand, Roeder records his "bingo" words in a Scrabble championship.  All of them.  He also provides all the "bingo" words from the tournament.  Good Lord.  I learned precious little from this book.

Silent Invasion, Deborah Birx

 

Silent Invasion:  The untold story of the Trump administration, Covid-19, and preventing the next pandemic before it's too late by Dr. Deborah Birx

Started: 7/6/2022

Completed: 7/11/2022

Recommendation: Mild Recommendation

Recommended By: Nobody

Review:

It is nice to hear that someone cared about data in the Trump administration.  Birx definitely pushed the limits of what she was "allowed" to do.  She also seems to be an excellent epidemiologist and definitely has a handle on what the right thing to do is.  The "bleach" press conference was well explained and I appreciated being able to think more of Birx.  She is definitely a Republican and she reached out to Republican governors more than anything else.  She refers to the middle of the country as the, "heartland."  I really appreciate what she tried to do.  I'm sad that she couldn't do more. 

The Republic For Which It Stands, Richard White

 

The Republic for Which It Stands:  The United States during reconstruction and the gilded age, 1865-1869 by Richard White is part of the Oxford History of the United States.  I have ready one other in the series and these are remarkably thorough.

Started: 12/20/2021
Completed: 7/10/2022
Recommendation: Highly Recommended
Recommended By: Nobody

Review:

For a book that reviews a little over 30 years, it kind of felt like a history in real time.  The level of detail is immense.  The sweeping conclusions reasonable (for the time period).  It is nice to have a history of the USA coming from across the pond where perspectives are different.  This book delivers on detail, the establishment of general themes, and a comprehensive look at the time period.  I really enjoyed this book and even though it took me a long time to read (it was in the player in my car), it was enjoyable and very thought provoking.

The Invisible Bridge, Rick Perlstein

 

The Invisible Bridge: The fall of Nixon and the rise by Reagan by Rick Perlstein is a book I picked up to try and understand better the growth of Nationalism.

Started: 4/10/2021
Completed: 7/6/2022
Recommendation: Recommended
Recommended By: Nobody

Review:

This is a really long book and I did not do as much driving during COVID.  As a result, this one took a long time.  In a way, however, that was a good thing as it gave me a chance to digest all of it.  The details about the Ford nomination were really interesting.  The broad stripes on the Reagan position that "people just want to believe" is what led to Trump (people abandoned facts for belief).  I knew Reagan lied a lot, but I had no idea how much.  The whole fantasy life he claims to have led was just unbelievable, though well substantiated.

Perlstein requires that you take Reagan seriously.  While he is careful to call Reagan on his crap, he does so respectfully.  This is not a collection of zingers, just an honest reflection on the man and his success.  His "Horatio Alger" road to the presidency is well documented.  I can recommend this book to progressives who want to understand a "compassionate" conservative and reconcile that image to the reality of Reagan as both governor and president.

The Long Way Home, Louise Penny

 

The Long Way Home by Louise Penny is the next Inspector Gamache novel.

Started: 7/4/2022

Completed: 7/6/2022

Recommendation: Not recommended

Recommended By: my parents

Review:

If you are reading the series, you probably need to read this one.  Penny is good, however, at catching you up.  I did not like it.  It was slow, drawn out, and the ending sucked.  Ugh