Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon

Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Why did I force myself to read this book when I hated nearly every minute of it? It was my dad's favorite book. Quitting just wasn't an option. This does however raise a number of questions about my dad's psyche.

Reading this book is like being inside the brain of a sadistic genius who has completely lost his sanity. Also it takes place during the bombings of World War II so there's good cause to lose one's sanity.

I liked the way the end of the book came back to many of the things at the beginning, especially the dodos, haha. I appreciated Pynchon's contemplation of death. Still, I wish the entire "Part 3: In the Zone" section of the book were just cut. Reading the book was painful enough with the unnecessary meanderings of Part 3.

I am giving three stars, but in this one case it does not mean that I liked the book. If I were adhering to the star system suggested by Goodreads I would give it 1 star. I can't give it one star because obviously Pynchon is a genius. He might be an evil genius though. Would that I could un-read certain sections of the book, I think I would.


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James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl

James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Maybe more like 3.5 stars. I couldn't remember the ending from when I read it as a child though I did remember the beginning pretty well. Maybe I only read half it when I was little? The beginning is fun in a dark way but then it sort of just meanders. The poems/ songs aren't really a strong point for Dahl either. But James says he likes it- though I'm shocked because he'd only let me read a few pages at a time. Maybe he just enjoyed having a long-term reading project with me.

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I, Robot by Isaac Asimov

I, Robot by Isaac Asimov
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I liked this novel. It's totally different from the movie- so much so that's it's really unexpected. The only thing in common with the movie is the three laws of robotics.

First of all, the main character is a robotics psychologist, Susan Calvin! That's awesome. She solves a number of problems with various different models of robots by trying to use logic traps. There are some definite feminist elements in the book, as the men don't take her concerns seriously, and she has to deal with that on top of solving the problem at hand.

Also, there are more disturbing issues of racism and subjugation present in the book as well. It seems fairly intentional. The engineers regularly call the robots "boy" and do other things that call up an ugly human history. Asimov even takes a swipe at the death penalty.

The book was written in 1950, so the Calvin is born in 1982, and she's robot problem-solving from when by the time she's 38, 2020. Get ready robot psychologists! Of course in reality, we don't follow the laws of robotics at all. Drones are used mostly for the purpose of harming humans. And Asimov didn't anticipate the internet or network connections so reality is much more frightening than science fiction.

I, Robot is very interesting and worth considering, but it was also a fun read. So either way, I recommend reading it.

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Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Excellent memoir (in the form of a letter to the author's son). Strongly recommend every American read this as soon as possible. Coates writes prose as if it is poetry. He clearly and simply traces the relationship between American economics, slavery, the Civil War, the modern South, police brutality, city projects, and the uphill battle of those trying to move away from the history. He manages to pack a lot into a very short book. Between his beautiful writing and his economy of words, I wasn't able to put the book down until I was finished.

It's particularly interesting reading this book right now, when the current presidential election is mired in these very issues. The thing that's different now, is that the racist-sexist forces in our country have failed to hide their intentions this time. With their true intentions on display a majority of the "other" seem to have banded together: Women, black people, Hispanic people, GLBT, and others voting together en masse against the typical oppressors. As Gloria Steinem says racism and sexism are closely related and intertwined. It keeps the maximum number oppressed and also helps keep everyone divided. It's not a conspiracy, it's simply that authoritarians want to keep as much power for themselves and away from as many others as possible, so everyone is "lesser." One thing that Coates stresses though is that even if a majority are moving away from racist-sexist attitudes, it takes only one act of state-sanctioned terrorism by the police to take away all security. And sadly there have been many more than one.

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Breasts by Florence Williams

Breasts: A Natural and Unnatural History by Florence Williams
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Excellent book that I recommend to all woman and to all parents. Discusses the purpose and evolution of breasts. She discusses issues important to feminism, breast health, and wider environmental issues. It's heaviest on the latter, but overall a very interesting, educational, and alarming book.

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The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg

The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is hodgepodge of how to change personal bad habits, ways to use habits against consumers in marketing, how to organize social groups by utilizing psychology, and random thoughts on habits versus free will. This isn't one of my favorite nonfiction books.

If you're trying to change a personal habit you can just read the appendix. Basically: find the cue, and then find a new reward. Groups can help you accomplish change.

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Xenocide by Orson Scott Card

Xenocide by Orson Scott Card
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

The last one-third of this book is better than the first two-thirds which should have been way more heavily edited. One major problem was that the book was trying to bring readers who skipped the first two books up to speed. I can't imagine what the point of that is. It would be impossible to like this book if you didn't read the other two.

Another problem is Ender's family. Even though it's been 30 years for them since the last book they act like they never healed or matured despite Ender's presence. They're super annoying, mean, and there's too many of them to care.

Finally, why is the author of The Hive Queen just getting to know the Hive Queen in this book?

But if you make it to the last one-third, it's interesting and fun. I'm considering reading the fourth in the series but I need a break right now.

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Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg

Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There is a lot of value in a woman with a top position in business pointing out the many barriers women face; and calling for changes in the work place, society, and in how both women and men approach business and feminism. For a lot of people these are already known facts, but the nature of this as a "business book" means a lot of people are exposed to these statistics and personal stories who might not otherwise be exposed.

That said, I was familiar with these problems already, and there are only a few suggestions that I thought I could use in the book. For example, she talks about quality time at work instead of quantity of time at work but this doesn't apply at all in the world of the hourly billable. She cites that men are more likely to bill any time spent thinking about work... but as far as I'm concerned that's called "overbilling the client." Also, I think there's a lack of long-term perspective in the book because Sandburg was relatively young in both age and spirit when she wrote the book. I think that if/when she writes a sequel there will be some change in her perspective.


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Yes Please by Amy Poehler

Yes Please by Amy Poehler
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love this book. It's very unexpected. I actually listened to the audiobook which I strongly recommend because you can hear not just Poehler but also her amazing audiobook guests. Poehler is brilliant and empathetic and has a lot of interesting things to say and good advice. My favorite is, "Your career is a bad boyfriend." Ugh, yeah, mine was an abusive boyfriend for a while. I cried no fewer than three times. Maybe not exactly what she was going for with a humor book, but it's really touching. I also laughed aloud while walking around my neighborhood so now my neighbors might think I'm crazy. It's all good.

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Brain on Fire by Susannah Cahalan

Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness by Susannah Cahalan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was interesting. I've read books before from the perspective of people effected by ailments but this was a little different because the way in which her personality was changed was such a big part of the story.

Additionally, the author is a reporter. I've read this type of memoir by doctors/scientists before (My Stroke of Insight, Psychopath Inside, When Breath Becomes Air) but it was distinctly different because the author didn't fully understand the medicine behind her diagnosis at the time. However, she throughly researched both the ailment and whether her memories, perceptions, and even the memories of her "witnesses" were accurate. This is sadly remarkable in this day and age. She proves to be a real journalist with integrity in the process.

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