Synopsis: Bored New York psychiatrist begins living his life according to the roll of a dice in order to escape the constraints of his personality. Unpredictable, but ultimately boring. My Take: There’s promise in the premise of this book. I first heard of “The Dice Man” gimmick via the highly entertaining Discovery Channel travel series […]
Entries from August 29th, 2009
“The Dice Man”, Luke Rhinehart (George Cockcroft)
August 29th, 2009 · 1 Comment · Nihilist, Over-Rated
Tags:Luke Rhinehart
“Things Fall Apart”, Chinua Achebe
August 28th, 2009 · Comments Off on “Things Fall Apart”, Chinua Achebe · African, History, Literature, Philosophy
Synopsis: A tribal patriarch in pre-colonial Nigeria is forced to confront the changes to his society brought on by the arrival of European settlers. The Anti-“Heart of Darkness”. My Take: “Things Fall Apart”, Chinua Achebe’s first novel, is a seminal work in the modern literary cannon. Released in 1958, it was one of the works […]
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“Discover Your Inner Economist: Use Incentives to Fall in Love, Survive Your Next Meeting, and Motivate Your Dentist”, Tyler Cowen
August 24th, 2009 · Comments Off on “Discover Your Inner Economist: Use Incentives to Fall in Love, Survive Your Next Meeting, and Motivate Your Dentist”, Tyler Cowen · Economics
Synopsis: The greatest economics writer in the blogosphere switches medium to offer an extended treatise on the use of economic principles to improve the non-economic aspects of your life. Utility is maximised. My Take: Tyler Cowen’s blog, Marginal Revolution, is hands down one of the best blogs on the ‘net. Not because he is the […]
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“Spring Snow”, Yukio Mishima
August 20th, 2009 · 1 Comment · Asian, Japanese, Literature
Synopsis: Dilettante son of a nouveau-riche family seeking societal acceptance meets the refined daughter of an aristocratic family struggling to adjust to the changes in Japanese society brought on by the Meiji Restoration. A deeply intense and culturally significant story of forbidden love. My Take: “Spring Snow” is generally regarded to be Yukio Mishima’s greatest […]
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“Politics: Observations and Arguments, 1966-2004”, Hendrick Hertzberg
August 19th, 2009 · Comments Off on “Politics: Observations and Arguments, 1966-2004”, Hendrick Hertzberg · History, Politics
Synopsis: A thematically arranged collection of Hendrik Hertzberg’s political essays for the New Yorker and the New Republic stretching from the mid-1960s to the end of the Bush Era. Reading political journalism with the benefit of hindsight is fun! My Take: Hendrik Hertzberg is like an over-sized red-velvet armchair in the corner of The New […]
Tags:Hendrick Hertzberg
“Gone With the Wind”, Margaret Mitchell
August 18th, 2009 · Comments Off on “Gone With the Wind”, Margaret Mitchell · History, Trash
Synopsis: The world of Scarlet O’Hara, an intemperate, ruthless and self-centred plantation owner’s daughter is turned upside down by the US Civil War and further, by that scoundrel, Rhett Butler. It’s a hell of a story apparently – 30 million people can’t be wrong. My Take: The things we do for those we love. When […]
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“The Know It All; One Man’s Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Man in the World”, AJ Jacobs
August 17th, 2009 · 1 Comment · Trash
Synopsis: Socially maladjusted US nerd consumes all 44 million words in the Encyclopaedia Britannica then provides an alphabetical cliff’s notes of the experience. The sum of the parts is less than the whole. My Take: I am a bit of a sucker for condensed knowledge. It’s a deeply shallow (if that’s possible) way of learning, […]
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“Fatherland”, Robert Harris
August 16th, 2009 · Comments Off on “Fatherland”, Robert Harris · English, History, Trash, WW2
Synopsis: Twenty years after the Nazi’s have won WW2 a criminal detective in the SS starts investigating the deaths of a number of senior party officials in the lead up to celebrations for Adolf Hitler’s 75th birthday. It’s Agatha Christie meets George Orwell. My Take: Let’s face it – the main appeal of historical fiction […]
Tags:nazis
“What Does China Think”, Mark Leonard
August 14th, 2009 · Comments Off on “What Does China Think”, Mark Leonard · Asian, China, Chinese, Philosophy
Synopsis: An idiot’s guide to the various streams of contemporary Chinese policy debate. When you view the world through the eyes of China’s intellectuals My Take: Those who know me know that I’m a bit of a Sinophile. While the human rights record of the Chinese government is obviously indefensible and deserves public attention and […]
Tags:China·Mark Leonard
“Henry and June”, Anais Nin
August 12th, 2009 · 1 Comment · Literature, Over-Rated
Synopsis: Married woman meets famous writer and falls in love. Then falls in love with writer’s wife. Then falls in love with cousin. Then her psychoanalysis. Then diarises sexual awakening. My Take: Yes, I admit have particular preferences when it comes to my reading habits. I read more than my share of modern Asian fiction, […]
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Tags:Anais Nin