sammiseah's reviews
293 reviews

Taming Silicon Valley: How We Can Ensure That AI Works for Us by Gary F. Marcus

informative medium-paced

3.5

I bought this book for my husband for Christmas - it was pretty highly rated and the subject matter is extremely relevant for our work (we both use AI quite a lot at work). 

It’s definitely a good summary of the various issues and concerns around AI, but my main gripe was that it was a bit too simplistic for me. There weren’t particularly novel or interesting points, but yeah it was a very good summary of outstanding issues. Additionally, even though it was published in 2024, it already felt a bit dated, but I guess that’s just how fast the field moves!

Overall, I think Marcus is a bit too optimistic about the whole AI situation. I doubt that there’s going to be sufficient much-needed(!!) regulation in time, and I’m already seeing how some people I know are using AI in terrible and ineffective ways. Honestly, Marcus should have focused more on how AI hallucinations can make your life terrible, especially if people aren’t able to figure out that what the AI is saying is just some bullshit and use AI-generated content without discernment 🙃

Orbital by Samantha Harvey

inspiring reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

I took Sam’s advice and read this book in a single evening. That doesn’t mean that I sped through it (or that one should speed through it), on the contrary, I had to slow myself down to really savour the beautiful writing. 

I like the premise of the book - six astronaunts/cosmonauts from different parts of the world, united by their experience in the space station, yet set apart from the rest of humanity by that very same experience. And yet, in some sense, they are more appreciative of humanity simply thanks to this experience. I also like the choice to separate the chapters based on the 16 orbits - a reminder of how the astronauts are on the same 24-hour timescale, but also not. 

As a scientist, the bits that really interested me were the similarities and differences in the day-to-day lives of the six - the descriptions of living without gravity, the efforts to stave off muscle loss, the disposal of waste in space, space walks etc. Not the point of the book, I know, but it’s just interesting to the effects of these changes in routines and how they bring people trapped in a small space together.

While this book is quite different from what I usually read, I saw parallels with The Quickening by Elizabeth Rush! Rush was a journalist on an expedition to Antarctica made possible only by the melting of the glaciers due to the climate crisis. She outlined her experience on board the icebreaker, sharing the vessel with scientists and crew with little personal space (not so different from the space station…?) And she spends her time contemplating about humanity, the climate crisis, and what it means to have children in this time. There, I also enjoyed the contemplations less and the descriptions of life on an icebreaker more 😅 it might be interesting if you enjoyed Orbital and are looking for something  similar.

The Genesis of Misery by Neon Yang

emotional mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I’d previously only read silkpunk novellas from them - with incredible world building and character development and this was no different!

Space Opera as a genre can get rather repetitive and mundane, so it is really refreshing when there are still new and interesting concepts. And as per usual, I’m astounded by the queer representation in their books. It’s all very tactfully handled, and concepts are gently introduced, which I love. 

Apparently this is supposed to be a modern day retelling or Joan of Arc, so the plot isn’t a surprise at all. I did appreciate the portrayal of religious fanaticism - the lack of logic and absolute conviction of righteousness were on point!!

I ended up hating and resenting the main character (Misery) but like - I think that might be the point of the book. lol.

Anyway, I’ll likely read the rest of the nullvoid trilogy once it’s out, at least for the space opera and worldbuilding.

Hopefully Misery and the plot get a little less annoying 😅

Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie

challenging emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Booker Prize 1981

Booker of Bookers 1993

Best of the Booker 2008

And I struggled. Constant struggle. Struggletown.

It didn’t help that I was reading this 600+ page tome on my daily commute, trying to read ~20 pages on every train/bus journey. And that was exacerbated by the fact that every single character had multiple different names - name changes, nicknames etc etc. I was also exasperated by the fact that the main character only appears after ~200 pages? 

🤣

I have to say that the narrative was intricately woven and the idiosyncrasies of every character were astounding. But sometimes books signpost where they are going, and this one really didn’t. I spent the entire book going “?!??!?!???” in my head 😅

Perhaps my shortcomings are the reason for my lack of enjoyment. I didn’t have a good understanding of Indian history and of Indian culture, and I do feel that that might have helped me appreciate the book a little more. 

All in all, it was an Experience. I’m glad that I read it, although definitely no more Rushdie books for me for the foreseeable future. I also kinda see how The Satanic Verses might have pissed people off (if it was indeed in a similar style), and I would still be curious to read it someday (far in the future lol).

All My Cats by Bohumil Hrabal

dark emotional fast-paced

4.5

My favourite fact about Bohumil Hrabal is that he died falling from a window of a hospital, apparently because he was trying to feed the pigeons. But his friends don’t think so and believe that it was a suicide. So yes, he was that eccentric. And now you know what to expect from this book.

This is a story of this eccentric writer’s relationship with a community of cats that he cared for in his weekend cottage at Kersko - how he becomes overwhelmed by the cats - by the love that feels for them, the anger and resentment that they cause and the guilt and despair that he eventually feels towards himself. 

So much of the book resonated with me. From his wife exclaiming “What are we going to do with all those cats?” every chapter, to the fact that he called two beloved cat sisters Blackie and Socks, to the sheer despondency that he frequently felt about his cats. I feel like every community cat feeder would probably laugh (and cry) at his portrayal of his interactions with the cats.

And then it got dark. (Cue for community cat feeders to stop reading lol.) I won’t spoil the book for you, but I’m glad that the dark parts don’t resonate that much with me. His contemplations about life, fate and justice are beautifully written (as always) and a pleasure to read. 

PS Sterilize your cats. 

Railsea by China Miéville

adventurous hopeful mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

The perfect book to drag me out of my February reading slump. Found this book propped up in a basement in a former bank turned bookstore (lol), was kinda attracted by the blurb and went for it! I've also previously heard of the author, but only in the context of non-fiction works (Naomi Klein thanked him in her latest book!). I read most of the book whilst stuck on the couch in a cough-syrup-induced daze so maybe that contributed to the atmosphere lol.

What. A. Journey. 

I'll try my best not to spoil this book because I think everyone deserves a chance to read it. The world-building is exciting and incredibly creative and I loved the premise. The characters weren't necessarily the most lovable and there was something lacking in character development, but the main character did kinda grow on me. The writing was extremely engaging and I couldn't put it down, even in my cough-syrup-drugged state. And LOL I didn't see the ending coming, but I have to say that I found it hilarious (and uh very much in line with my political beliefs lol).

... I do think that this book may not be everyone's cup of tea. I've always loved steampunk/silkpunk-type fantasies, and this fits right in (Miéville has described it as "salvagepunk" and "weird fiction" haha). The writing style also takes some getting used to and some parts come across as a little "immature" - it's technically classified as a YA book after all. 

I'm now excited but also a little apprehensive to explore some of his other works - apparently they can be even more wildly bizarre and wildly brilliant and I'm not sure I'm ready for that. Maybe in a few months.

Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr

emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I bought this book a year back but I didn’t get to read it until Jo-Ann recommended it this year - thanks for the rec! Consumed this over the past two days amidst the new year chaos and festivities.

Anthony Doerr is famous for All The Light We Cannot See, which was a brilliant read. Cloud Cuckoo Land is less tragic but equally delightful. A love letter to librarians, books and the art of storytelling - of course I loved it.

I loved the five interwoven stories, interspersed with the folio pages of a fictional Greek work that ties the entire book together. I loved how the stories all come together at the end. And I loved the descriptions of lands and places across the different centuries (expected no less from Anthony Doerr!!). I also appreciated the references to the climate crisis, but I believe this was written/released before COVID? It’s always a bit weird with books released ~2021/2022 but set in modern day - like… one expects references to the pandemic but sometimes the authors choose not to include them?

I spent a lot of time contemplating if this book was better than All The Light We Cannot See and I do feel that All The Light left a bigger impression (just a more novel concept, especially for that time?). Nonetheless, this was a delightful tribute to books and stories and I breezed through it-  it didn’t feel like 600+ pages at all. 

Knots and Crosses by Ian Rankin

mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

I was extremely excited to start reading this before I realised that I had already read it less than 6.5 years ago… and somehow I had zero recollection of the book, the author and the plot??? You would think that I would vaguely remember the plot but I completely didn’t.

Anyway, it was equally unmemorable this time around… the writing is decent and somewhat atmospheric, characters are still a bit 2D and I felt like the plot was a bit of a cop-out (haha pun intended?). Good for a quick brainless read but otherwise not really worth it 🙃

Doppelganger by Naomi Klein

challenging informative reflective fast-paced

4.75

 I’m ashamed to say that I’ve probably read the first 100 pages of Shock Doctrine and How To Change Everything, but I never managed to finish any of those. Since 2018-2019, I definitely struggled to read books about the climate crisis and related socio-political books thanks to my climate anxiety, so I was a little nervous about this one.

I was initially attracted by the interesting premise: Naomi Klein investigates her doppelgänger (Naomi Wolf)’s descent into the land of fake news and conspiracy theories. The book veers away from the doppelgänger themes to provide a pretty good analysis of post-COVID US (in my opinion! But I’m perhaps biased, since I also lean left). It was also a very timely read, as I was reading this as Trump took over in the US and as we are over 400 days since October 7th (although the oppression of the Palestinians has been happening for much longer). 

I tried to take some notes but they were generally chaotic, so these are the points that I found interesting:

I took comfort in the fact that she admits that these issues sometimes weigh down on her too. It made me feel a little less alone in my anxiety about the state of the world. I also took comfort in the following concepts that she shared:
- The concept of calm as shock resistance. In her words: “Calm is not a replacement for righteous anger or fury at injustice, both of which are powerful drivers for necessary change. But calm is the precondition for focus, for the capacity to prioritize.” In contrast, panic just leads to chaos and irrational beliefs/actions?
- Sally Weintrobe: “Care and uncare for inherent parts of us all, and that each seeks expression and dominance over the other.”

Other relevant ideas/concepts that I found interesting, but that I should probably already have known if I stayed up to date with leftist literature 😅:
- the diagonalist movement: how the far right and far left unify over certain issues
- the role that fitness industry plays in right wing misinformation
- conspiracy culture does not challenge hyper-individualism that pushes crises through the breaking points, but instead puts the blame on singularly powerful individuals - ties in with an inability to look at systemic issues with existing systems/capitalism (inability to be truly left when starting as a liberal??)
- the people who exploit the planet are the ones who are unable to unself for even a moment?
- john a powell: “we can be hard and critical on structures, but soft on people.”
- change requires collaboration and coalition vs the fact that we live in a culture that tells us to fix massive crises on our own
- the need to fight fragmentation, sectarianism, and a stubborn refusal to make strategic alliances on the anti-fascist left
- struggle helps us see each other - alchemy of large protests, strikes, rallies, sit-ins - power of collective organising

Anyway, sorry for the chaotic collection of thoughts. I enjoyed the book and it’s definitely worth a read! 

The Vegetarian by Han Kang

dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Twisted but thrilling and impossible to put down. I’m still struggling to find the words to describe the book.

So - the book won the Booker International Prize 2016, and Han Kang won the Nobel Prize for Literature last year, so naturally I was curious! And then the descriptions of the book: A woman becomes vegetarian and it sets off a grotesque chain of events. …okayyy… weird but I decided to give it a shot.

And what a journey it was. The book is incredibly well-written (and probably very well translated?). I feel like it gave me some insight into Korean culture, but I do wish that I understood Korean culture a bit better before reading this. It’s not really about vegetarianism or meat-eating, but more about power, self-perception and societal constructs. I do have to admit that I was a little baffled by the ending, and based on a quick google search… I’m not the only one 😆 I guess it was intentionally left up to the reader’s interpretation, which is fitting but I found it a bit unsettling (oops).

But I’ll definitely be on the lookout for other books from Han Kang as the unique writing style and inimitable perspective are simply unparalleled. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Medical content, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Rape