Tuesday, September 20, 2016
Hello!
Hello???? Is this thing on? Feeling the distance between us and wondering if we could restart our old book club. Love, K
Saturday, October 18, 2014
Monday, May 27, 2013
What I've Been Reading: Age of Miracles
Who: Karen Thompson Walker
What: Age of Miracles.
Why: book club
Recommend: Nah.
This is a near future dystopia narrated by a 20-something, about the year she was 12 and the Earth's rotation started to slow. But she's 12, so what often is most important to her is the boy at the bus stop, the loss of her best friend (for random, unknown social reasons, not by death), and discovering that her father lies to her.
This book received a ton of hype when it first came out, and I was really excited to read it. However, it wasn't as good as I wanted it to be. I liked the mix of simple glimpses into the science of what was happening, and on the other hand, the scenes from the life of a 12-year-old-girl. But in the end, there wasn't enough of either to satisfy me. Plus, the narrator's voice threw something off. I kept thinking the girl was in her late teens, not just 12. And the repetitive "and that was the last time I xyz" started to get annoying.
Thursday, May 17, 2012
The Tower, the Zoo, and the Tortoise
Just a quick note to say I'm LOVING this book. A light read that isn't fluff. I'm laughing, and feeling very sad. Can't wait to discuss!
Friday, April 13, 2012
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
your brain on fiction
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/18/opinion/sunday/the-neuroscience-of-your-brain-on-fiction.html
So maybe a novel for our next pick?
So maybe a novel for our next pick?
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Musings on the History of Everything
(How's that for a pretentious title for a blog post?!) Anyway, I've been plugging along and when I realized my Kindle was telling me I was at 50%, I decided I should post some of my thoughts.
So here's a random assortment of the notes I made so far:
- On page 1, Bryson writes: "(It is a slightly arresting notion that if you were to pick yourself apart with tweezers, one atom at a time, you would produce a mound of fine atomic dust, none of which had ever been alive but all of which had once been you.) And my note is: "Why do I have a feeling my mind is going to be blown so casually like this over and over while reading this? What an exciting prospect!"
And so far, that's basically what has happened. I've had to read this book in small chunks, because I find I can't take it all in and just keep on reading. I get so amazed (or confused -- sometimes both), that I have to put the book down and just think about it for awhile.
Also, though, I've found that time after time the amazement comes from simply stated facts about how ridiculously precarious life on this planet is. And I start to get depressed. Thinking, well then, is there really a point? To life? To trying to save it? etc. etc. etc. I usually get over myself fairly quickly, however, and continue to read the next day.
- Page 6: "The idea was to see if it isn't possible to understand and appreciate -- marvel at, enjoy even -- the wonder and accomplishments of science at a level that isn't too technical or demanding, but isn't entirely superficial either." My note: Thesis statement! And at 50% read, I'd say he's fairly successful. There have been sections that do get too technical for me and I've had to start skimming. But it's not too long before he breaks and moves on to another topic, and I'm able to jump back in again.
- There are lines that just make me laugh out loud. Page 88: "Once his wife returned home to find a freshly deceased rhinoceros filling the hallway." Can you imagine?!
And, page 327, talking about a scientist working on the multitudes of seemingly new fossils recently found: "There was so much unrecognized novelty in the collection that at one point upon opening a new drawer Conway Morris famously was heard to mutter, "Oh fuck, not another phylum." This had me guffawing. And I think I'm going to adapt it as my new phrase to utter when feeling overwhelmed.
- My final thoughts for the post are about the scientists in general. What a bunch of wackadoos! I'm currently listening to a book on CD titled "The Science of Evil" which posits that evil is actually a complete lack of empathy. Today I heard a section in which the author said that studies have shown that humanities students tend to score higher on the empathy scale while science students tend to score lower on the scale. I wonder if that has something to do with all this bizarre behavior we're reading about.
So here's a random assortment of the notes I made so far:
- On page 1, Bryson writes: "(It is a slightly arresting notion that if you were to pick yourself apart with tweezers, one atom at a time, you would produce a mound of fine atomic dust, none of which had ever been alive but all of which had once been you.) And my note is: "Why do I have a feeling my mind is going to be blown so casually like this over and over while reading this? What an exciting prospect!"
And so far, that's basically what has happened. I've had to read this book in small chunks, because I find I can't take it all in and just keep on reading. I get so amazed (or confused -- sometimes both), that I have to put the book down and just think about it for awhile.
Also, though, I've found that time after time the amazement comes from simply stated facts about how ridiculously precarious life on this planet is. And I start to get depressed. Thinking, well then, is there really a point? To life? To trying to save it? etc. etc. etc. I usually get over myself fairly quickly, however, and continue to read the next day.
- Page 6: "The idea was to see if it isn't possible to understand and appreciate -- marvel at, enjoy even -- the wonder and accomplishments of science at a level that isn't too technical or demanding, but isn't entirely superficial either." My note: Thesis statement! And at 50% read, I'd say he's fairly successful. There have been sections that do get too technical for me and I've had to start skimming. But it's not too long before he breaks and moves on to another topic, and I'm able to jump back in again.
- There are lines that just make me laugh out loud. Page 88: "Once his wife returned home to find a freshly deceased rhinoceros filling the hallway." Can you imagine?!
And, page 327, talking about a scientist working on the multitudes of seemingly new fossils recently found: "There was so much unrecognized novelty in the collection that at one point upon opening a new drawer Conway Morris famously was heard to mutter, "Oh fuck, not another phylum." This had me guffawing. And I think I'm going to adapt it as my new phrase to utter when feeling overwhelmed.
- My final thoughts for the post are about the scientists in general. What a bunch of wackadoos! I'm currently listening to a book on CD titled "The Science of Evil" which posits that evil is actually a complete lack of empathy. Today I heard a section in which the author said that studies have shown that humanities students tend to score higher on the empathy scale while science students tend to score lower on the scale. I wonder if that has something to do with all this bizarre behavior we're reading about.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
