Take a photo of a barcode or cover
nb_leftist's reviews
371 reviews
The Care Manifesto: The Politics of Interdependence by The Care Collective
fast-paced
2.0
This is my rewrite of this review because I accidentally deleted my first one and cannot get it back :(
I was so excited for—and then disappointed by—this one. I assumed it was going to focus more on building local community through focuses on care and a rejection of neoliberal capitalist profit-motives. Instead it is a generic call for globalist capitalism to be “re-regulated” and for it to rely on “care” rather than profit. It does not provide any plan of action and follows the age-old leftist tradition of saying that we have an opportunity right now, as if it will be slightly easier than it would have been when we didn’t have “an opportunity.” It also praises AOC as bringing care back into the mainstream, which may have been the thing in 2020 for some leftists, but reading it now after AOC’s condemnation of Palestinian liberation struggles rings wack.
At best, this is a good introduction for sympathetic liberals who want to get into leftist literature, but I would give something else as this is quite surface level and still ends at a conclusion of social-democrat reform rather than the needed revolution. Sad day, I was excited for this one :(
I was so excited for—and then disappointed by—this one. I assumed it was going to focus more on building local community through focuses on care and a rejection of neoliberal capitalist profit-motives. Instead it is a generic call for globalist capitalism to be “re-regulated” and for it to rely on “care” rather than profit. It does not provide any plan of action and follows the age-old leftist tradition of saying that we have an opportunity right now, as if it will be slightly easier than it would have been when we didn’t have “an opportunity.” It also praises AOC as bringing care back into the mainstream, which may have been the thing in 2020 for some leftists, but reading it now after AOC’s condemnation of Palestinian liberation struggles rings wack.
At best, this is a good introduction for sympathetic liberals who want to get into leftist literature, but I would give something else as this is quite surface level and still ends at a conclusion of social-democrat reform rather than the needed revolution. Sad day, I was excited for this one :(
Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches by Audre Lorde
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
I don’t really have much to say, and the stuff I do have to say has certainly been said before. My absolute favorite piece is the interview between Audre Lorde and Adrienne Rich, the way they establish the connections between her piece on the erotic and her piece on poetry as a necessity made those piece significantly more interesting. I also cannot get over the piece on the erotic or the piece on learning from the 60s.
Her writing is not only important for its contents, but it feels important to read. It makes the reader themselves feel important.
Her writing is not only important for its contents, but it feels important to read. It makes the reader themselves feel important.
The Revolution Starts at Home: Confronting Intimate Violence Within Activist Communities by Ching-In Chen
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
Although I picked this book up because I wanted more of a direct guide to dealing with these issues (not what this book is), I have come to realize that there is never going to be something like that. Intimate violence, abuse, “toxicity”, and manipulation are much more complicated and individual than any one-size-fits-all guide could provide for. Even with this realization, I still wish there was more direct stories of community accountability rather than stories of abuse (which are incredibly important).
I don’t really have much else to say, the collection is incredibly important and I am quite proud that I read it . It is similar to Emergent Strategy by adrienne maree brown and, because I read it after reading Emergent Strategy, I consider it a building on what was written about there.
I don’t really have much else to say, the collection is incredibly important and I am quite proud that I read it . It is similar to Emergent Strategy by adrienne maree brown and, because I read it after reading Emergent Strategy, I consider it a building on what was written about there.
Gender Nihilism: An Anti-Manifesto and Other Texts by Alyson Escalante
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
4.75
The version I read included the Anti-Manifesto, it’s Addendum, and “Beyond Negativity” (a follow up essay Escalante wrote ~1 year after Gender Nihilism).
I have read this before, probably around a year ago(?) and it was my first real encounter with gender abolitionist ideas. Since then I have written an essay or two on gender abolition and, because of that research, I’ve read up on Gender Acceleration, Gender Nihilism, and Xenifeminism, which are all different areas or theories of gender abolition. In my opinion, I prefer Gender Accelerationism as I believe it has the most materialist understanding of Gender, but all of them being valuable critiques to the table. Gender Nihilism, for example, focuses on the ideological categorization of the gender apparatus but does not provide any real solutions. Escalante agrees with this and, in “Beyond Negativity”, seems to take a position closer to Gender Acceleration than in Gender Nihilism.
As I said, I have written essays on gender abolition, and I could do it again, but I’ll refrain from doing that. I’d recommend checking this out as it’s short and free online.
I have read this before, probably around a year ago(?) and it was my first real encounter with gender abolitionist ideas. Since then I have written an essay or two on gender abolition and, because of that research, I’ve read up on Gender Acceleration, Gender Nihilism, and Xenifeminism, which are all different areas or theories of gender abolition. In my opinion, I prefer Gender Accelerationism as I believe it has the most materialist understanding of Gender, but all of them being valuable critiques to the table. Gender Nihilism, for example, focuses on the ideological categorization of the gender apparatus but does not provide any real solutions. Escalante agrees with this and, in “Beyond Negativity”, seems to take a position closer to Gender Acceleration than in Gender Nihilism.
As I said, I have written essays on gender abolition, and I could do it again, but I’ll refrain from doing that. I’d recommend checking this out as it’s short and free online.
We Go Where They Go: The Story of Anti-Racist Action by Kristin Schwartz, Michael Staudenmaier, Shannon Clay, Lady
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
This might be one of my favorite books. I’m heavily involved in the local punk scene where I live and learning about the political history, not in the 60s or whatever, but in the 90s and 2000s, is so empowering. It’s cool to know that we aren’t as detached from mass political organizing as mainstream shit wants us to think. ARA, with its many problems, is such a strong example of positive organizing that brought confrontation of fascism into the world stage, something that is severely lacking once again (at least in the United States). Definitely worth a read for those interested in Punk/Skin/Hardcore history and those interested in building up Antifa organizing as it gives a broad history and lots of reflection of positives and negatives of ARA.
America on Film: Representing Race, Class, Gender, and Sexuality at the Movies by Harry M. Benshoff, Sean Griffin
informative
reflective
medium-paced
3.75
Read this for a film class I took. Pretty good, there’s some out of date language but overall does a good job of explaining hegemony and power exercised through film. It also gave a ton of movies to watch which challenge and/or affirm different power structures, which I really appreciate. It was crazy expensive though as it is a textbook.
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
challenging
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Another one I’ve been wanting to read for a while.
I cannot tell you how impressed I am. I knew it was going to be good but this is so much better than I could have imagined. A lot of the book is written as an ethnography and I fucking love cultural anthropology. Crazy commentary on love, culture, gender, anarchism, Taoism, war, and civilization. The copy I had came with an essay about the novel as an afterword which I think did a good job of placing it in a more contemporary/current context.
I cannot tell you how impressed I am. I knew it was going to be good but this is so much better than I could have imagined. A lot of the book is written as an ethnography and I fucking love cultural anthropology. Crazy commentary on love, culture, gender, anarchism, Taoism, war, and civilization. The copy I had came with an essay about the novel as an afterword which I think did a good job of placing it in a more contemporary/current context.
The Testimony Of Steve Biko: Black Consciousness in South Africa by Steve Biko, Millard Arnold
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.25
I picked this up for a dollar from a local book store sale, turns out it hasn’t been printed for a long time and to get a physical copy costa about 90 dollars. Of course, I annotated the shit out of it.
It’s very informative though I question the truth of it all. I find it hard to believe that a revolutionary wouldn’t bend the truth a little bit to make sure his friends didn’t go to jail, even under oath. Outside of that, I think a lot of it is interesting and gives a lot of perspective on the current situation in Palestine, as South Africa was also facing apartheid. (The difference being that Palestine is now facing a complete genocide.)
It’s not for everyone, it’s long, and is almost all in courtroom dialogue, but does provide an interesting and personal look into someone who has become, more or less, an abstract figure in leftist history rather than a real person.
It’s very informative though I question the truth of it all. I find it hard to believe that a revolutionary wouldn’t bend the truth a little bit to make sure his friends didn’t go to jail, even under oath. Outside of that, I think a lot of it is interesting and gives a lot of perspective on the current situation in Palestine, as South Africa was also facing apartheid. (The difference being that Palestine is now facing a complete genocide.)
It’s not for everyone, it’s long, and is almost all in courtroom dialogue, but does provide an interesting and personal look into someone who has become, more or less, an abstract figure in leftist history rather than a real person.
The French Revolution: A Very Short Introduction by William Doyle
informative
reflective
medium-paced
3.0
It’s fine, I don’t think it can be called an intro though. It doesn’t really explain what a lot of the words mean and requires some background research. I do think reading through this and watching some YouTube videos ab both the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars helps.
Closely Watched Trains by Bohumil Hrabal
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
There’s something about Hrabal’s work that I always have a hard time with, but I don’t know how to describe it. I think “Too Loud a Solitude” is better and more interesting but I’m glad I gave this a try. Definitely some interesting stuff. The most interesting part for me was the killing of the animals, everyone is guilty, not just the German’s. The Jew’s were not just killed by the Germans who pushed the button or escorted them on the trains, but by the station workers who watched and knew, by the spouses of those workers who knew.