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gilles's reviews
283 reviews
How to Invent Everything: A Survival Guide for the Stranded Time Traveler by Ryan North
funny
informative
medium-paced
4.0
Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
While this book had some interesting moments, it was far too long with too many tangents that had no bearing on the plot. It's already a sprawling story that can be difficult to follow without side plots being introduced that don't have a lot of bearing on the main story threads besides world building. I generally don't mind world building, but it needs to serve the narrative, and I'm not sure a lot of this did. Many of the threads that seemed irrelevant did come together in the end, but I feel this could've been a much tighter story. There were also entire chapters devoted to the horniness of main characters and it was dropped in throughout the rest of the novel as well, which I could've done without.
Extremely Hardcore: Inside Elon Musk's Twitter by Zoë Schiffer
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
4.5
A Newfoundlander in Canada: Always Going Somewhere, Always Coming Home by Alan Doyle
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
3.5
A Newfoundlander in Canada is a memoir by Great Big Sea vocalist Alan Doyle, recounting a series of anecdotes from his experiences as he travelled from his home province of Newfoundland and Labrador across Canada for the first time on the band's first national tour in the 1990s. Written in a lighthearted and animated manner, he gives an honest impression of the people he encounters from the perspective of his clear naiveté of what the rest of Canada is like, as well as some of the difficulties the band encountered while travelling. It's an interesting perspective as Newfoundland had been its own country only 45 years prior to the period of this book and definitely had its own culture, so Doyle recounts the culture shock he encountered during his travels.
You won't find a lot of depth here, but I'd still recommend this book for lighthearted perspectives and light reading. If you want more of an autobiography and perspective of Newfoundland culture, read Doyle's first book Where I Belong instead, which goes into his upbringing in Newfoundland and what that experience was like.
You won't find a lot of depth here, but I'd still recommend this book for lighthearted perspectives and light reading. If you want more of an autobiography and perspective of Newfoundland culture, read Doyle's first book Where I Belong instead, which goes into his upbringing in Newfoundland and what that experience was like.
A City on Mars: Can We Settle Space, Should We Settle Space, and Have We Really Thought This Through? by Zach Weinersmith, Kelly Weinersmith
funny
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.5
A City on Mars by Kelly and Zach Weinersmith is a pop-sci but serious look at the complexities of trying to create a settlement in space, primarily focusing on the Moon and Mars, written with a mildly humorous narrative. It's split into 5 major themes:
- The difficulties with human physiology in space including sex and pregnancy, which would be required to create a longer-term population
- The difficulties with each likely location (The Moon, Mars, and artificial space stations)
- The difficulties with managing resources and becoming self-sustaining
- The legal and political difficulties likely to be encountered
- An exploration into the sort of population likely to be required to sustain a settlement
It's a very well-researched (as evidenced by the extensive bibliography included), well-written, and realistic take on why despite the ambitions of billionaires and others, actual settlements in space are likely to be a long way off and there's a lot more work to do. It demonstrates that most of the work actually required to prepare isn't actually being done yet.
Overall, it was very interesting and makes solid points. You may look at the themes above and think they're obvious, but this goes into more depth than you're likely to have thought about or even be aware of. If you're interested in the subject, I'd recommend giving it a read.
- The difficulties with human physiology in space including sex and pregnancy, which would be required to create a longer-term population
- The difficulties with each likely location (The Moon, Mars, and artificial space stations)
- The difficulties with managing resources and becoming self-sustaining
- The legal and political difficulties likely to be encountered
- An exploration into the sort of population likely to be required to sustain a settlement
It's a very well-researched (as evidenced by the extensive bibliography included), well-written, and realistic take on why despite the ambitions of billionaires and others, actual settlements in space are likely to be a long way off and there's a lot more work to do. It demonstrates that most of the work actually required to prepare isn't actually being done yet.
Overall, it was very interesting and makes solid points. You may look at the themes above and think they're obvious, but this goes into more depth than you're likely to have thought about or even be aware of. If you're interested in the subject, I'd recommend giving it a read.
Defying Limits: Lessons from the Edge of the Universe by Dave Williams
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
4.0
A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor by Hank Green
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0