2018 50 Book Challenge

[Geoffrey Firmin]

8 Mythos The Greek Myths Retold by Stephen Fry

This is definitely not the Greek Myths as told by Robert Graves.This is Stephen Fry in the most entertaining manner articulating the telling of the Greek Myths in his own indomitable linguistic manner with a distinct stylistic nod at times to Oscar Wilde.Fry takes great delight in articulating the sexual proclivities and antics of the gods while not overly emphasising gender bending. He articulates how Zeus becoming a bull amongst other forms, to seduce a beautiful maiden and describes the tragedy that tends to befall beautiful male youths who engage in peccadilloes with the gods with equal vigour. Mind you he also comes down hard on the hubris, indolence and indulgence of the gods towards mortals. Which is odd as he claims that the myths are just stories.

Fry does not engage in deep mythological analysis of the Greek myths in his telling of the tales but makes them spring from the pages like gods emerging from the head of Zeus. Highly recommended.

 

[LonerMatt]

Spoiler: List

1. Kangaroo
2. South of the Border, West of the Sun
3. 19Q4
4. An Elegant Young Man
5. Throne of the Crescent Moon
6. When Gravity Fails
7. The Choke
8. Heat and Light
9. Who Owns the Future

9. Who Owns the Future

This is a non-fiction book written by technologist Jaron Lanier. Jaron's first book You Are Not a Gadget was an excellent read and was broad, deep and thorough.

This book essentially is written about what Lanier terms Siren Servers - large stockpiles of information that's used to track and direct human behaviour. Lanier traces how these servers are becoming increasingly powerful and increasingly one-sided (knowing more and more about a larger number of people, while offering those same people very little in the way of information).

Lanier wants the future to be better than the present. He argues that most information systems disenfranchise large numbers of people while concentrating power and money in the hands of a few. He argues, and this is where it's interesting, that companies using Siren Servers are not compensating people for the use of their information. Information is valuable, and companies are making megabucks off this information yet those providing this information are never paid, even a fraction of a cent, for their information.

He argues that with two changes we could see a much more equitable future:
1. Pay people for their information (ie, every time a sale of information is made, say to advertisers, those encapsulated are compensated)
2. Hyperlinks should not be one way, but two way - ie if I click a hyperlink, or download a copy, the originator of that content will be able to see who has done this. This would provide an array of possibilities for compensation for information, music, art, content, etc.

I found the book a tad repetitious. Lanier makes his arguments early on and circles around his reasoning for a long time. Unlike YANAG, which rambles about technology almost all the time non-stop, I felt this was neither impressive enough, or broad enough, to warrant its length.

That said, if JL was in charge of markets and technology the world would be a much better place - his ideas are consistently about humanising progress and using cutting edge ideas to improve what it is to be human, rather than improve the bottom line of a company's account. A much more worthy aim, IMO.

 

[Journeyman]

9. Who Owns the Future

2. Hyperlinks should not be one way, but two way - ie if I click a hyperlink, or download a copy, the originator of that content will be able to see who has done this. This would provide an array of possibilities for compensation for information, music, art, content, etc.

I may well be wrong, but I thought that it was often possible to see this, and to track who clicked what and who downloaded what, and from what websites - this is how all the material in what Lanier calls "Siren Servers" is gathered.

Anyway, with regard to my recent reading:

5: I, Claudius, by Robert Graves. I loved the idea of this, but found it hard going in parts. Graves' classical education and knowledge of Rome in its heyday was prodigious but the recounting of some of the events and linkages was a bit too unnecessarily complex at times, I thought.

6. The Eagle of the Ninth, by Rosemary Sutton. Continuing my Roman reading, I picked up this historical novel for young adults, one which I had read and enjoyed in childhood. Again, I thoroughly enjoyed it and my son is now reading it.

I'm now going through a bit of a Neil Gaiman period.

 

[Jeremiah Say]

I'm a nerd! So far in 2018, I've read:

1. Grit by Angela Duckworth. A book that caused me to think a lot. DEEP THOUGHTS and sleepless nights

2. Brain Maker

3. Principles by Ray Dalio. To be honest, I haven't finish this book because it is too long. Read about 50% and it was solid.

4. Barking up the wrong tree. Hilarious! Laughed out loud countless of times. Hands down one of the best books I've read.

5. The power of moments. Was disappointed because it gets a little dry when I was about 60% in the book. I don't think it is worth the 5 stars rating in Amazon.

6. Level up your life. Turn your life into a game. Success doesn't have to be dull. It can be fun and interesting (still reading about 30% there).

 

[wojt]

8 Mythos The Greek Myths Retold by Stephen Fry

This is definitely not the Greek Myths as told by Robert Graves.This is Stephen Fry in the most entertaining manner articulating the telling of the Greek Myths in his own indomitable linguistic manner with a distinct stylistic nod at times to Oscar Wilde.Fry takes great delight in articulating the sexual proclivities and antics of the gods while not overly emphasising gender bending. He articulates how Zeus becoming a bull amongst other forms, to seduce a beautiful maiden and describes the tragedy that tends to befall beautiful male youths who engage in peccadilloes with the gods with equal vigour. Mind you he also comes down hard on the hubris, indolence and indulgence of the gods towards mortals. Which is odd as he claims that the myths are just stories.

Fry does not engage in deep mythological analysis of the Greek myths in his telling of the tales but makes them spring from the pages like gods emerging from the head of Zeus. Highly recommended.

Funny enough I thrifted Myth & Legend by Thomas Bullfinch for 50p 2months ago, reading it atm, hard read for furriner but rewarding.
Did you read both Graves and Bullfinch enough to compare them?

 

[Geoffrey Firmin]

Funny enough I thrifted Myth & Legend by Thomas Bullfinch for 50p 2months ago, reading it atm, hard read for furriner but rewarding.
Did you read both Graves and Bullfinch enough to compare them?

I read Graves forty years ago. Bullfinch I’ve never read. Can recomend THe Marriage of Cadmus and Harmony by Roberto Calasso.

 

[Geoffrey Firmin]

9.The Overlook by Michael Connelly

Harry finds himself waiting, waiting on the night shift for the stroke of murder to come his way and it does. But is all what it seems? A tight paced procedural thriller without too many ‘tells’ set in tight time frame. Involving the FBI, RHD politics and terrorism, and above all murder most foul. Well crafted LA Noir.

 

[LonerMatt]

Spoiler: List

1. Kangaroo
2. South of the Border, West of the Sun
3. 19Q4
4. An Elegant Young Man
5. Throne of the Crescent Moon
6. When Gravity Fails
7. The Choke
8. Heat and Light
9. Who Owns the Future
10 Waking Gods

10. Waking Gods

Ok so this is a follow up book to Sleeping Giants, which was a hectic read for sure.

This book continues the legacy of the first, but just isn't as good. Roughly the same cast, a larger problem to deal with, etc, etc.

But! Lots of questions, the tension handled well, the resolution botched. More over the completely obvious nod to Neon Genesis was a real pain the arse IMO - silly and lazy. Plot twist: a kid ends up being the only one to pilot a giant robot defending against aliens but she's a bit emotional. I mean really ******* lazy. Should have just yelled Shinji a few dozen times.

Some great hard sci fi elements (the genealogy aspect of the novel was incredibly well done, IMO), but overall not nearly as good as the first one.

 

[Foxhound]

Matt, have you read the follow up to Sapiens?

 

[Geoffrey Firmin]

10. Self and Soul A Defense of Ideals by Mark Edmundson

The author is an academic from the University of Virginia. The first section of this book I enjoyed it did display some value and insight. However the second section started to piss me off no end. I disagree with his reading of Shakespeare and to be honest this is simply a romanticised polemic against Post Structuralism and the mediocrity of the bourgeoisie disguised as an advocacy of the virtues and necessity of Idealism in a materially self obsessed connected world.

The authors own words best describe the book. “One knows in order to consume. One knows in order to succeed. One knows in order not to be made a fool of. But one does not lean in order to do the only things that real learning offers:to acquire virtue and wisdom.”

No wonder Idealism is held in such low esteem in society, works like this do little to advance its cause.

 

[LonerMatt]

Spoiler: List

1. Kangaroo
2. South of the Border, West of the Sun
3. 19Q4
4. An Elegant Young Man
5. Throne of the Crescent Moon
6. When Gravity Fails
7. The Choke
8. Heat and Light
9. Who Owns the Future
10 Waking Gods
11. Wimmera

11. Wimmera

Dark, unpleasant, coming of age, rural Australia, debut novel. Ticks every single one of the boxes that makes it a tour de force for me. Highly recommended to fans of Australian fiction. Not even a little bit recommended for victims of sexual abuse.


Fox:

Yes, I have. I can't remember much about it - I think that it was decent, but not nearly as interesting as the first one. But still, didn't feel like my time was wasted.

 

[Geoffrey Firmin]

11.THE EIGHTIES THE DECADE THAT TRANSFORMED AUSTRALIA by FRANK BONGIORNO

Been there done that.

The Sliver Bodgie, Placido Domingo the worlds greatest treasurer. Bondy and the Americas Cup. Skase and the white shoe brigade. Farirfax and the ‘rivers of gold.’ The BLF eat the rich. The Oils,INXS post punk. Pub rock. Ronny and the impact of MAD and WW3. The float. The accord. The magic of Mark Ella and the Grand Slam. Smack and Mr Asia. AIDS and STD. Cigarette bans in the workplace. The Drought. The Floods. My little mate. Black Monday and Tuesday stock market crash. Black Wednesday bushfires. The recession we had to have. The list goes on.

A fun time was had by all.

Interesting political, social and cultural history of Australia focused on the changes with which the nation grappled in that decade.

 

[California Dreamer]

11.THE EIGHTIES THE DECADE THAT TRANSFORMED AUSTRALIA by FRANK BONGIORNO

Sounds great.

 

[Geoffrey Firmin]

Sounds great.

It is.

Best thing is picked up the HB in a clearance bookstore in Kingston for $6.

 

[LonerMatt]

Spoiler: List

1. Kangaroo
2. South of the Border, West of the Sun
3. 19Q4
4. An Elegant Young Man
5. Throne of the Crescent Moon
6. When Gravity Fails
7. The Choke
8. Heat and Light
9. Who Owns the Future
10 Waking Gods
11. Wimmera
12. Artemis

12. Artemis

Problem on the moon. Interesting use of chemistry and physics, female lead character is cool, I guess, but cliche and maybe even a little sexist (possibly, not sure about that).

Airplane fiction, nothing too heavy here.