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cinnakuuri's reviews
105 reviews
Notes on Complexity: A Scientific Theory of Connection, Consciousness, and Being by Neil Theise
Did not finish book. Stopped at 7%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 7%.
thought i would like to focus on other topics for now.
Lies and Weddings by Kevin Kwan
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
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
Mirror, Mirror: The Uses and Abuses of Self-Love by Simon Blackburn
Did not finish book. Stopped at 16%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 16%.
i sort of fell out of reading this book since i got more interested in learning more about other topics. might return to this book later on.
Why We're Polarized by Ezra Klein
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
i've been jaded by how politics has been discussed in the mainstream, but i appreciate the level-headedness that ezra klein voices in this book. his writing style is so clear and consistent that i can hear him in my head all throughout, just like his podcast. he's a writer operating well within his wheelhouse, even as he's well-aware of his own biases.
i mostly agree with his sentiments, and even though i don't have the relevant research to back me up i get the inkling that his framework also applies locally. the only difference is that he can be a lot more optimistic about his own country and party, if only because they've won the popular vote.
from where i am the politics of identity is the supermajority and i don't think there's anything i can do with that other than migrate out of this godforsaken country.
i mostly agree with his sentiments, and even though i don't have the relevant research to back me up i get the inkling that his framework also applies locally. the only difference is that he can be a lot more optimistic about his own country and party, if only because they've won the popular vote.
from where i am the politics of identity is the supermajority and i don't think there's anything i can do with that other than migrate out of this godforsaken country.
Wayfarer by Alexandra Bracken
adventurous
challenging
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
can't quite believe that i managed to finish this book at all. if the first installment was buoyed by its intentional prose and structured storytelling, this one just seemed to exist for the sole purpose of stuffing up the plot holes.
i can tell the author struggled to make the original storyline a lot more diverse, but that ship has long sailed. if all we get as minority representation is a soggy cardboard cutout of a character in li min or a sloppy japanese phrase thrown in towards the end, i would rather not have seen it at all. isn't it enoough that i'm reminded that li min is chinese every five pages or so when etta isn't called the white girl nearly as often? i thought so.
same goes for sophia as the seemingly retconned lesbian rep. can't say i saw it coming, since there was no indication of it in the first book whatsoever.
also not a fan of plot twists for the sake of shock value—and i say this if only because for them to make sense the author feels the need to explain them afterwards. what's the whole nonsense about imprinting thrown in towards the end? the stakes feel cheapened when the characters are made to lose nothing of consequence until the final page.
i guess i finished this for the sake of saying i didn't leave any loose ends, unlike the author.
i can tell the author struggled to make the original storyline a lot more diverse, but that ship has long sailed. if all we get as minority representation is a soggy cardboard cutout of a character in li min or a sloppy japanese phrase thrown in towards the end, i would rather not have seen it at all. isn't it enoough that i'm reminded that li min is chinese every five pages or so when etta isn't called the white girl nearly as often? i thought so.
same goes for sophia as the seemingly retconned lesbian rep. can't say i saw it coming, since there was no indication of it in the first book whatsoever.
also not a fan of plot twists for the sake of shock value—and i say this if only because for them to make sense the author feels the need to explain them afterwards. what's the whole nonsense about imprinting thrown in towards the end? the stakes feel cheapened when the characters are made to lose nothing of consequence until the final page.
i guess i finished this for the sake of saying i didn't leave any loose ends, unlike the author.
Plato's Republic: A Biography by Simon Blackburn
funny
informative
reflective
fast-paced
4.25
i had this lying around my bookshelf for so long. i should have read it sooner. then again, i think i've only been able to appreciate it now that i'm slightly more informed in terms of political philosophy than i was before. not to mention a whole lot more cynical.
didn't expect this book to be written by someone who isn't a big fan of plato. blackburn makes this clear in his critiques at every turn of the page. it helps that i agree with most of his points. from a more practical point of view, plato's utopia isn't just irrelevant—its insistence on perfection is fascist at worst. i'm pinning totalitarianism on him.
i'd have to say this book has its flaws though, particularly its fixation on western philosophy. the author did say he limited his scope, but it still feels personal when he mulls over science and mathematics as western inventions—dare i say the asian civilizations had it all figured out first?
didn't expect this book to be written by someone who isn't a big fan of plato. blackburn makes this clear in his critiques at every turn of the page. it helps that i agree with most of his points. from a more practical point of view, plato's utopia isn't just irrelevant—its insistence on perfection is fascist at worst. i'm pinning totalitarianism on him.
i'd have to say this book has its flaws though, particularly its fixation on western philosophy. the author did say he limited his scope, but it still feels personal when he mulls over science and mathematics as western inventions—dare i say the asian civilizations had it all figured out first?
Passenger by Alexandra Bracken
adventurous
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
The Protestant Work Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism by Max Weber
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
3.25
this essay dragged on for far longer than i was mentally prepared to absorb. i'd wanted to read through the source material so i could say that i'm not overly reliant on secondary sources. as it turned out the article i'd read beforehand already told me much of what i needed to know.
i have to admit i also struggled with the parts of the work that distinguished between the different major protestant sects—there's only so much that i know about them apart from their name, given that i was raised catholic.
but at least i learned one crucial detail from weber himself: capitalism, somehow, is the philosophy of monasticism made mainstream. this explains why i have such an undying work ethic similar to that of a calvinist; my alma mater is closely associated with arguably the father of monasticism himself, benedict of nursia.
i have to admit i also struggled with the parts of the work that distinguished between the different major protestant sects—there's only so much that i know about them apart from their name, given that i was raised catholic.
but at least i learned one crucial detail from weber himself: capitalism, somehow, is the philosophy of monasticism made mainstream. this explains why i have such an undying work ethic similar to that of a calvinist; my alma mater is closely associated with arguably the father of monasticism himself, benedict of nursia.
Why Fish Don't Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life by Lulu Miller
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0