I used to more audiobooks (and podcasts) when I had a long commute. Every so often I think of listening to an audiobook but then I am afraid it will take months to finish it.Book 6
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Declassified by Arianna Warsaw-Fan Rauch
I’m counting audio books dammit. I think this ended up being a bigger time commitment then if I had read it.
Read by the author.
The remedial music theory was what it was. She did a nice job of putting some composers in context. I also really enjoyed the insider’s view of the world of classical musicians and the author’s complex relationship with both being a performer and an enthusiast of the music.
It probably would have dictated a lot more listening if I had been reading it.
Also, I’m fairly certain this is the first audiobook I’ve ever completed. Tapes and cds made it much to difficult to remember where I was at and what not.
I mean I started this one in November. The next audiobook I have on deck is Our Band Could be Your Life. It’s 3x as long. LolI used to more audiobooks (and podcasts) when I had a long commute. Every so often I think of listening to an audiobook but then I am afraid it will take months to finish it.
This one is gonna take me forever... it's not just that it is 21 hours long, but I basically go... okay I need to hear that everytime they mention an album...I mean I started this one in November. The next audiobook I have on deck is Our Band Could be Your Life. It’s 3x as long. Lol
Thinking? This would imply philosophy to me, but this looks like business self help to me..., I guess those are called motivational...View attachment 167166
First book of the year. “Thinking” books are my crime novels - easy reads that I can go through fairly quickly. This is a good one.
Was thinking of an alternative to self help. There’s no woo in it, really, if that makes sense. It’s basically just a guy making some conclusions after reader a bunch of philosophy. Time management is always doomed to fail because you can’t do it all, in a nutshell…Thinking? This would imply philosophy to me, but this looks like business self help to me..., I guess those are called motivational...
Books that make me think about stuff = Thinking.Was thinking of an alternative to self help. There’s no woo in it, really, if that makes sense. It’s basically just a guy making some conclusions after reader a bunch of philosophy. Time management is always doomed to fail because you can’t do it all, in a nutshell…
Ah… I’d say that’s philosophy then same as Pirsig or Thoreau, just a bit more practical than say Kant.Was thinking of an alternative to self help. There’s no woo in it, really, if that makes sense. It’s basically just a guy making some conclusions after reader a bunch of philosophy. Time management is always doomed to fail because you can’t do it all, in a nutshell…
Book 4: Children of Dune, by Frank HerbertBook 1: Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens
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Great Expectations? Great book!
Despite his cultural ubiquity, I've never really read any Dickens prior to this. I've been meaning to, and decided to go with this, which is on the shorter end (for Dickens). I generally knew the plot due to exposure from Wishbone, but had a cracking time reading it nonetheless. Don't know what to say; guy can write. I want to pick up a few more Dickens this year; my goal is two books a month, and based on my current pace I should be able to devote a month or two to a single book.
I'm open to anyone's Dickens recommends!
Book 2: Swag, by Elmore Leonard
(apologies for the downright awful cover)
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Every now and then I pick up some Leonard; he writes snappy dialogue and driving plots. I really gobbled this one down, too; I went to Florida last week and basically finished this on the flight there.
Elevator pitch: a used-car salesman teams up with a petty crook after catching him trying to steal a car from the lot. The salesman develops a dozen rules for armed robbery, mostly revolving around being very careful with your money/company, as well as only robbing sure things and walking away the moment things seem dicey. (This reminds me of an episode of the superlative Criminal podcast, in which a man goes on a bank robbery spree, just to see if he can; he goes in unarmed, gives the clerk a note asking for the cash drawer, and just walks away with or without the money).
Lo and behold, the two criminals turn against one another. Ironically, it's the author of the rules who begins throwing them out the window, leading to tensions. Lots of Leonard's novels have been made into movies, and this could be a pretty fun one.
Book 3: Pnin, by Vladimir Nabokov
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Another goal of mine this year is to reread a few favorites. Oddly enough, my goodreads rating from initially reading this ~10 years ago was three stars. It's remained in my mind since, however, so I read it over the rest of my Florida trip.
I love Nabokov; he has such a way with words that just bowls me over. Pnin especially is a witty story, focusing on a middle-aged Russian professor trying to adjust to life in America. He's the subject of derision from his peers and is portrayed by the unnamed narrator as a bumbling, ineffectual fool. However, he's also deceptively graceful and sweet.
On the heels of this I ordered The Defense; I realize I've only read four Nabokovs, though I've read all of them twice now.
I re-read the original Dune books when it was first announced Denis Villeneuve was making the first one. Could not make it through Children of Dune, but finished all the others.Book 4: Children of Dune, by Frank Herbert
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Hmm. Maybe I didn't engage with this book on the right level, but I found it dumb and boring. I actually quite liked Messiah previously, but the story here is very thin. A lot of hemming and hawing over the prospect of incest, and a plot by the villains to (checks notes) train wild tigers to attack anyone wearing a specific outfit, and then gifting that outfit to the Atreides twins. That's a Wil E. Coyote-ass plan.
Book 5: The Slynx, by Tatyana Tolstoya
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The jacket describes this as Nabokov's Pale Fire by way of A Clockwork Orange, so of course I'm there. A semi-satirical post-apocalyptic novel, The Slynx concerns society after an event called The Blast. Mutations are common (called Consequences, they can be anything from a prehensile tail to claws to heat vision), and a number of people alive before The Blast mysteriously remain immortal (at least safe from old age and disease; murder and misadventure can still take you out). The protagonist, Benedikt, works for an odd, despotic ruler, who makes a room full of people copy books and put his name on them. Free thought and creative thinking are discouraged; rumor has it the mystical Slynx will find you, look at you, and you'll never be the same. After some time, Benedikt gets married and joins his father in-law in raiding homes for hidden books, which they steal and read for themselves. Weird, absurd stuff, great prose. Feels like a comment on Russian culture and history, of which I have minimal context.
Book 6: A Closed and Common Orbit (Wayfarers #2), by Becky Chambers
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You may recall last year I read Chambers' Monk and Robot series and loved it a ton. I'd previously read Wayfarers #1, A Long Way to a Small Angry Planet, and found it pleasant but a bit lacking; some of the characters were squee/holds-up-spork so-random, and the main ensemble had a bit of Burger King Kids Club syndrome.
A friend recently told me they read the whole series and that it's worth it. They were right; Chambers hones in on the characters really well and does a good job of presenting a cozy story which eschews superficial action or conflict, while also providing a propulsive story and strong emotional stakes. At one point, two characters resolve to escape a situation and despite that being the obvious story path, the way it unfolded made my heart swell; it's a skilled writer who can take a foregone conclusion feel like an organic triumph.