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aeudaimonia's reviews
69 reviews
Lavinia by Ursula K. Le Guin
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Demons by Fyodor Dostoevsky
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander
challenging
dark
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.75
Ways of Seeing by John Berger
challenging
informative
reflective
fast-paced
5.0
I don't believe, usually, in catalogues of "books everyone should read," but Ways of Seeing is an exception. Absolutely indispensable for our time.
On Palestine by Ilan Pappé, Noam Chomsky
challenging
informative
medium-paced
3.0
Very complicated feelings about this book, and it's a little gutting to post a lukewarm review for it when I care so deeply about the issue. Overall it's still a good read (if anyone wants to read it, consider ordering from shoppalestine.org; it's run by the Middle East Children's Alliance and they're doing really important work for children in Palestine and elsewhere).
Unlike several other reviewers, I really enjoyed the conversation format and found it enlightening in a way straight prose wouldn't manage to be. The book assumes you have a good working knowledge of the situation (and also broadly pro-Palestinian leanings). With the basics out of the way, it's fascinating to see where Chomsky and Pappé agree and disagree, usually on finer points such as the essence of Zionism and the advantages/disadvantages of a single- or two-state solution. (Here I found Pappé slightly more compelling, but Chomsky always gave me a lot to think about).
Once again, the biggest problem with this book is the editing. I'm sure, given Chomsky's schedule, that he wasn't the one who stitched his "chapters" together (the chapters being simple reconfigurations of his previous essays; occasionally the same sentences appeared almost verbatim across two or three chapters). The result is a repetitive jumble, Frankenstein meets Groundhog Day, of information that manages to be both vague and hyper-specific to the early 2010s. Tldr; the editing did Chomsky very dirty here, and for a book that presupposes its reader's familiarity with the topic there's no excuse for such vapid repetition in the whole last third.
My other bone to pick is the lack of meaningful Palestinian representation. Chomsky and Pappé are American Jewish and Israeli Jewish respectively, and their cultural backgrounds provide crucial insight into both American and Israeli domestic/foreign policy and culture. At multiple points, however, they allude to "what the Palestinians will decide" and "how the Palestinians will react." Not, of course, that Palestinians will all feel the same way, but could you maybe ask one??? Phone a friend? There are so many great Palestinian academics out there, and their absence is notable throughout the whole of the book.
I got a lot out of On Palestine, but would have preferred that Barat, with Pappé's and Chomsky's permission, had just made these recorded conversations publicly available. The book is at its best when they're free to argue with and elaborate on each other's positions.
Unlike several other reviewers, I really enjoyed the conversation format and found it enlightening in a way straight prose wouldn't manage to be. The book assumes you have a good working knowledge of the situation (and also broadly pro-Palestinian leanings). With the basics out of the way, it's fascinating to see where Chomsky and Pappé agree and disagree, usually on finer points such as the essence of Zionism and the advantages/disadvantages of a single- or two-state solution. (Here I found Pappé slightly more compelling, but Chomsky always gave me a lot to think about).
Once again, the biggest problem with this book is the editing. I'm sure, given Chomsky's schedule, that he wasn't the one who stitched his "chapters" together (the chapters being simple reconfigurations of his previous essays; occasionally the same sentences appeared almost verbatim across two or three chapters). The result is a repetitive jumble, Frankenstein meets Groundhog Day, of information that manages to be both vague and hyper-specific to the early 2010s. Tldr; the editing did Chomsky very dirty here, and for a book that presupposes its reader's familiarity with the topic there's no excuse for such vapid repetition in the whole last third.
My other bone to pick is the lack of meaningful Palestinian representation. Chomsky and Pappé are American Jewish and Israeli Jewish respectively, and their cultural backgrounds provide crucial insight into both American and Israeli domestic/foreign policy and culture. At multiple points, however, they allude to "what the Palestinians will decide" and "how the Palestinians will react." Not, of course, that Palestinians will all feel the same way, but could you maybe ask one??? Phone a friend? There are so many great Palestinian academics out there, and their absence is notable throughout the whole of the book.
I got a lot out of On Palestine, but would have preferred that Barat, with Pappé's and Chomsky's permission, had just made these recorded conversations publicly available. The book is at its best when they're free to argue with and elaborate on each other's positions.
Provocations by Søren Kierkegaard
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
3.75
Kierkegaard has always been one of my favorites and this book is a great reintroduction to his works and philosophy. Especially good for beginners, as Moore not only selects but abridges Kierkegaard's notoriously difficult style. As much as I love the man himself, this book hovers at a 3.5-3.75 for me, all to do with the editing. The first 200 pages consist of larger (4-5 page) selections, but the latter 200 are mostly aphorisms and extended analogies, closer to 4-5 sentences. Their topical arrangement, on one hand, made for a much more boring, tedious reading experience; on the other, such small selections render it impossible to maintain a dialogue with Kierkegaard as a writer. How can you meaningfully disagree with a page of short quotes that have all been taken out of context? Provocations is great for consuming Kierkegaard, but not for interpreting him. On the bright side I am compelled to return again to his original, complete works.
The Essential Rilke by Hannah Liebmann, Galway Kinnell
emotional
inspiring
reflective
4.0
Rilke's originals are simply divine and defy a 0-5 scale. "Whoever we are at the end..." Phenomenal.
The translation is... okay. It's like, fine. Thank God they included the German, but, even for someone who's rusty in the language, it inevitably exposes the translation's inadequacies. But it is, bare minimum, adequate. The four stars is just for the translation. Don't come for me.
The translation is... okay. It's like, fine. Thank God they included the German, but, even for someone who's rusty in the language, it inevitably exposes the translation's inadequacies. But it is, bare minimum, adequate. The four stars is just for the translation. Don't come for me.
No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
The Idiot by Fyodor Dostoevsky
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0