The Oresteia by Aeschylus

The Oresteia by Aeschylus
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I recently reread this 20 years after my first reading in a college class, the details of which I cannot remember. I think we were studying the religion of mythology and their conception of justice? I don't remember what I thought the first time but on this reading at least, I am not impressed with that justice.

Part 1 "Agamemnon" is about Clytaemnestra murdering Agamemnon. I have a lot of sympathy for Clytaemnestra. Agamemnon killed their daughter Iphigenia. This is basically the most unforgivable crime I can imagine, but he's not in the least worried.

Clytaemnestra also killed Cassandra, which is maybe a little harsh, but Cassandra didn't seem especially worried about shacking up with a man who murdered his own daughter so maybe she has it coming a little bit too. Reading a more generalized Greek mythology in high school I loved the character of Cassandra, but Aeschylus doesn't really have a lot of patience for her, and that's fine.

Part 2 "The Libation Bearers" is about Orestes killing his mother Clytaemnestra to avenge his father's murder. This one is really intense, even compared to the first part.

Orestes kills his mother even after she begs him not to. Heartless. His motives are a bit dubious. Does he not know his father killed his sister Iphigenia? Is he actually just mad his mother sent him to live outside of the castle? Is he just a super religious opportunist who has to follow the Oracle or risk life-failure? Maybe all of these things.

Part 3 "Eumenides" is about Orestes's trial and is a travesty of justice.Orestes was either equally or *more* wrong in killing his mother Clytaemnestra than she was in killing her husband Agamemnon, Orestes's father.

The Gods spew total sexist nonsense that the child doesn't share the mother's blood. It's a ridiculous set-up having Athena, who didn't have a mother, judge the trial. The jury is obviously all male. Not to mention the irony that Agamemnon was such a bad father that he killed his own daughter, but he's considered the rightful parent.

My star math: 5 stars for part 1 and part 2, 2 stars for part 3. 12/3= 4 stars.

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Thrive by Arianna Huffington

Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder by Arianna Huffington
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Those of you who know me in real life, or even from my book reviews, know that I am not easily impressed. Well, I'm impressed. I'm impressed by this book and the studious, thoughtful, lovely soul that wrote this book.

It starts off with softballs. She states the problem. Okay, we all know what a disaster the business culture has become. Then she makes a big case for meditation and sleep and exercise. This might feel obvious to people who have been trying to figure things out for a long time, but surely this advice the younger crowd needs, as many of us waste several tired unhappy years without mindfulness. It would have helped young me. But also around this time, you might become skeptical that you're reading another cheesy self-help book, albeit a very well-cited and scientific-sounding one.

It's not another cheesy self-help book. It's more like an owner's manual to being a complete person. An action plan for humanity. A philosophical work that perfectly captures this particular moment in time. A push towards spiritual enlightenment.

I would also say that if there's a part you feel like discarding or ignoring, check your feelings to see why. I had the experience in part of it as well, but I sat with my resistance and I think I'm wrong. If you're trying to disregard something she says, you're probably letting yourself off the hook for something you don't want to do. But Huffington's advice not wrong. This is because she's obviously read widely, thought deeply, and mindfully experienced a great deal.

Really 5+ stars.

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A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a straightforward adventure tale with magic in it and I found the story and a few main character enjoyable. The only slight demerit is that the rules of magic are pretty arbitrary and ultimately these arbitrary magic rules determine the outcome so that's a little less than satisfying.

It also feels like the story was supposed to be harder to resolve, but the author got tired of writing. Of course, there are sequels to this book, which I will probably read, and they might resolve this feeling.

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Free Will by Sam Harris

Free Will by Sam Harris
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This makes me deeply uncomfortable, but nonetheless, it's difficult to dispute. I'm also not comfortable with a leap into public policy based on this, unless as Harris suggested we focus the prison system on containing dangers, instead of punishment.

There is a section about observing our thoughts arise on their own that might make more sense to people that have studied and attempted meditation.

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Letter to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris

Letter to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Despite being a very short book, this is a good critique of fanatical literal Christianity and fanatical religions in general. It is also a good critique of the liberal denial of the threat of Islamic fanaticism on Western society and its values. I agree for example that misogyny shouldn't get a pass just because it's Islamic misogyny. Does try to answer the question of why the more moderate religion Karen Armstrong proposes is still a danger and ethically harmful.

Nonetheless, he fails to address how he can preclude a superpower of some kind in a (multiple?) universe that operates under such totally unexpected and not-rational-seeming rules of physics. So he still comes off as sounding nearly as arrogant as the religious fanatics he critiques.

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Lab Girl by Hope Jahren

Lab Girl by Hope Jahren
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When I started reading this book I didn’t think I’d end up liking it as much as I do. It’s pretty unexpected. I enjoyed all the information about plants and plant research, and the struggle of being a research scientist, but more than that, this book is a friend-love story.

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Caraval by Stephanie Garber

Caraval by Stephanie Garber
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Reviewing this book is tricky because you will love it or hate it. It's a solidly YA fantasy book. If you like fun and can tolerate purple prose, then you might love this. If you require literary things in it like developed characters and well-written sentences this is probably not for you. For me, it was a fun quick read- and like a combo of The Night Circus and The Hunger Games. I mean that sounds good right? I might even reread it.

The ending felt like a bit of a letdown, and it also felt like kind of a messy wrap-up with some things I couldn't accept. Also, the mystery aspect is a bit of cheat because you can't actually solve the mystery though I understand this is true of most mystery books.

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Breathe by Anne-Sophie Brasme

Breathe by Anne-Sophie Brasme
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Interesting short French novel about Charlene's obsession with an American French girl that is awful to her. There's no surprise in the book, but only a meditation on the obsession. The writing is good and very interesting. It's true though that something is missing- after all Charlene appears to have a mental illness that pre-dates Sarah.

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Hourglass: Time, Memory, Marriage by Dani Shapiro

Hourglass: Time, Memory, Marriage by Dani Shapiro
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Some good writing. Interesting. She does the Joan Didion repeat repeat repeat again later thing. Doesn't give me much insight into her marriage or marriage in general. Is an interesting meditation on time and memory. Does the repeat repeat repeat thing.

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Nudge by Richard H. Thaler

Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness by Richard H. Thaler
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

One basic premise, many thoroughly detailed examples. But the examples are super important life examples about investing, insurance, education and as such are pretty interesting. Be warned though, I don't think it really works as a self-help book. It's more about how governments, companies, or other large entities can point people in the right direction of their best decisions.

There's a political/economic bias in the book which the author admits up front, but is neither liberal nor conservative per se, but something Thaler calls "libertarian paternalism." The idea is that people should get a few choices (but not lots of choices that overwhelm them) keeping in mind that they rarely know what's best or act in their own best interest. Libertarian in practice but paternalistic in your mind? Sort of.

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It's Okay to Laugh by Nora McInerny Purmort

It's Okay to Laugh by Nora McInerny Purmort
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book is wonderful. It's honest, raw, and hilarious. The next thing I'm going to say is going to sound like it's not that hilarious, but I swear it is. In rapid succession she had a miscarriage, her father died, and her husband died of cancer. Having been through something similar with both of my parents dying of cancer (they were in their early 60s, I was in my 30s), I could relate to a lot of her feelings and appreciate the sometimes dark humor. Obviously, that's still totally different than what she went through, but she has a whole section on how grief is lonely because it's so different for everyone, and yes, that part is also spot on. Reading the book is like having a friend that really gets it go through the bad stuff with you.

I might be a little OCD, but the chronology in the book was crazy and I couldn't get a handle on what happened when. I'm still not totally sure when the last part of the book took place chronologically, but for me, that was the only small flaw in this nearly perfect memoir.

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Dune by Frank Herbert

Dune by Frank Herbert
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Nearly perfect fantasy-scifi book except for the kind of weird vaguely political ending. I especially enjoyed the numerous strong interesting female characters that play important roles in the action. This is one of those books that when I finally read I regret waiting so long to read.

Also, this is the 100th book I read from my dad's inherited collection.

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Mindfulness for Beginners by Jon Kabat-Zinn

Mindfulness for Beginners: Reclaiming the Present Moment--And Your Life by Jon Kabat-Zinn
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Just the basics. I like that it's short but there wasn't too much you can't find in all the other mindfulness books.

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The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle

The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment by Eckhart Tolle
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a good simplification and modernization of Buddhism to make it less religious-y for modern readers. (Ie., never mind about rebirth and hungry souls, and what not.) It's in a question-and-answer format which is more effective for this subject than it sounds like it would be.

That said, I think it's a stretch to say the Bible or Christianity is referencing these "enlightenment" frames of mind. Also, the small section on menstruation, not necessary, and hard to take from a man that really has no idea what he's talking about. Wouldn't have loved that part even if a woman wrote it though.

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Year of Yes by Shonda Rhimes

Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand In the Sun and Be Your Own Person by Shonda Rhimes
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Very funny at times, interesting, and even a little inspiring. Probably more interesting if you've seen Grey's Anatomy and Scandal. I've only watched a season of Scandal, but maybe I'll go back and binge watch Grey's Anatomy. (I also never watched ER, House, Scrubs, or any of the doctor shows except Doogie Howser, and that was a really long time ago!)

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The Genius of Birds by Jennifer Ackerman

The Genius of Birds by Jennifer Ackerman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

For some reason, I couldn't get through this at all the first time I picked it up, but it was no trouble this time and I flew through it. There is some belaboring in the examples of bird intelligence but overall pretty interesting.

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A Confession by Leo Tolstoy

A Confession by Leo Tolstoy
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Tolstoy trying to figure out the meaning of life. Remarkably similar to my own experiences except I never got to be a successful sinful writer. Haha. I don't feel terribly satisfied with the end of his essay or my (same) current status. Hopefully, there's some step after this.

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What It Means When a Man Falls from the Sky by Lesley Nneka Arimah

What It Means When a Man Falls from the Sky by Lesley Nneka Arimah
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Most of these stories were extremely well-written and powerful. She can do simple and powerful, and she can do crazy magical realism.

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Option B by Sheryl Sandberg

Option B: Facing Adversity, Building Resilience and Finding Joy by Sheryl Sandberg
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book is about going through and surviving grief, so in some ways, it came at the perfect time for me. I agree with so much she says about how grief feels and how friends and family should help.

I think part of the issue with this book might be that her view of grief is still pretty limited. She tries to include stories of the immense grief that other people suffer and especially those with less financial advantages than her, but it feels like she still doesn't totally get it in places. For example, while she acknowledges that not everyone can afford to keep their home, pay for childcare in the face of grief, etc. she doesn't meaningfully address these problems. And she appears oblivious to some things that are not in the mourner's control. For example, my friends can't afford to drop everything in their own lives to come help me. Nor do I have other family to step in. She's lucky in so many ways she doesn't even realize. She also only briefly touches on the effect of multiple tragedies on a person. She only briefly touches on the loss of meaning in life. (Maybe Tolstoy for that issue.) She doesn't even seem aware about the possibility of clinical depression hijacking grieving.

Finally, I get that she has to be positive to sell books and also so she doesn't drive people to despair. I get that if she wants to keep her job she has to still appear enthusiastic about her corporation's performance, but who actually cares? Why is this even in a book about grief? No really, who will care a 100 years from now that she worked really hard and made a lot of money? Someone might care that she wrote a wonderful book about grief that helped people, but the focus on the former makes the latter miss the mark a bit.

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What Happened by Hillary Rodham Clinton

What Happened by Hillary Rodham Clinton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Bit of a hodgepodge. More revealing of her personality than her other memoirs, but still not that revealing. Things are a bit out of order sometimes. Mostly a defense. She's frustrated. Most of us are.

She gives a really good summary of what the intelligence agencies have confirmed about the Russian interference in the US 2016 election, along with incredibly suspicious things that she noted that Trump and others in the campaign stated publically.

She was not very gentle with Trump, Putin, Senator Bernie Sanders, candidate Jill Stein, FBI Director James Comey, or television personality Matt Lauer (I refuse to call Lauer a journalist).

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Blink by Malcolm Gladwell

Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book is super interesting, but after reading it I am not any smarter than when I started.

"Blink is a book about how we think without thinking, about choices that seem to be made in an instant - in the blink of an eye - that actually aren't as simple as they seem. Why are some people brilliant decision makers, while others are consistently inept? Why do some people follow their instincts and win, while others end up stumbling into error? How do our brains really work - in the office, in the classroom, in the kitchen, and in the bedroom? And why are the best decisions often those that are impossible to explain to others?"

I don't know!

The psychologist predicts whether a marriage will last has been scientifically studying it for years. The tennis coach who knows when a player will double-fault was an expert but just magically started seeing it without knowing why. The antiquities experts who recognize a fake at a glance had expertise but did so contrary to the science.

But even if you're an expert- don't trust your immediate reaction! All the politicians thought Warren Harding would be a great president and he was terrible. And there is the example of when police make huge instinct-based mistakes that result in them shooting unarmed, innocent civilians. We respond differently if we are subconsciously primed, a thing we fail to notice so we probably can't protect ourselves against.

The whole section on Coke and Pepsi seemed especially irrelevant and boring.

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The Death of Ivan Ilych by Leo Tolstoy

The Death of Ivan Ilych by Leo Tolstoy
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The most important, most true, most amazing thing I have ever read. I wish I had read it sooner and often.

Death is one of the most important things humans must confront, but most of don't until and unless we must. Instead, we are caught by surprise. When I had to confront it the first time, I couldn't believe how unprepared our society had left me. There is a lot of information that would make us able to handle it with more grace and less pain. The Death of Ivan Ilych perfectly captures the ironic surprise of the most important event of our lives which we all know will happen but surprises us nonetheless.

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Hard Choices by Hillary Rodham Clinton

Hard Choices by Hillary Rodham Clinton
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book is a challenge to get through and should have been edited down significantly. Also, it is not really a personal memoir. No shocking revelations here or much personal material at all. It’s primarily a foreign policy book.

That said, it’s a great rundown of foreign policy events from 2008-2012 and sheds a lot of light on current events as well. Clinton gives specific examples around the world of different concerns that the players must weigh and that sometimes conflict: American values, promoting democracy around the world, promoting American economic interests, and promoting peace and security to name a few.

I marked all the countries she discusses at length in tags. But given the current climate, the Russian parts were of special interest to me. Seems like Putin and the Russians have a long list of reasons to dislike Clinton. Since this book was written well in advance of the election interference, the reasons are dispersed throughout the book.

Overall, I have to admire how knowledgeable she is about both foreign and domestic issues, how well she can communicate those issues, and how well she understands the importance of upholding our national values. It was also interesting to see how her disagreements with President Obama were presented in the book, with Obama being the more idealistic leader determined to adhere to these values even more than Clinton. She frequently defended less idealistic and more pragmatic options.



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South and West: From a Notebook by Joan Didion

South and West: From a Notebook by Joan Didion
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I get it. She writes beautifully. Her random jottings in a notebook are better than what most people will ever write in their lives even with edits. And I did enjoy meandering through the racist South of the 1970s. But seriously, what was that California/ Patty Hearst mess at the end?

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Orphans of the Sky by Robert A. Heinlein

Orphans of the Sky by Robert A. Heinlein
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Fun idea for science fiction and interesting religious metaphor. People aboard a generational ship forget everything about Earth, science, and technology, and as the areas with windows to the outside are shut off, they forget even that they are on a ship, but begin to think the ship is all of existence. It's a brilliant concept and I would have loved to see how StarTrek (STNG) would have handled it. Unfortunately, Heinlein's version is not very deeply thoughtful. The characters are not developed very deeply, the society is very primitive and extremely stubborn, and most disappointingly, the women never get revenge for all the sexism inflicted on them. The mutated humans are a fun twist, especially since Siamese twins Joe and Jim. While Joe-Jim is not treated with a lot of dignity by other members of the crew, they are accorded a fair amount of respect by Heinlein, at least relative to the other characters.

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