The Identity Trap – Yascha Mounk
Mounk makes the case here for classical liberal values, untainted by what he sees as the distorting effect of identity politics. It’s convenient to treat people as members of their identity groups, according to their racial characteristics, gender, etc. But … Continue reading
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One Brother — Andrew W. K.
Hope Without Optimism – Terry Eagleton
This is a collection of writings about hope, not really addressing optimism much other than to disparage it. I was hoping (without optimism) that it would be a bit more technical in nature, but instead it is quite discursive and … Continue reading
A Swim in a Pond in the Rain — George Saunders
George Saunders has lectured on Russian literature for years. Reading this book is like attending one of his lectures. (I imagine.) The book addresses six stories: each story appears in full, along with extended discussions of its background and meanings. … Continue reading
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The Good Life – Hugh Mackay
“No one can promise you that a life lived for others will bring you a deep sense of satisfaction, but it’s certain that nothing else will.” Continue reading
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Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone – Benjamin Stevenson
This great whodunnit subverts every expectation. Normally in this genre, subtle clues are scattered throughout the narrative, but in this book the narrator continually breaks the fourth wall to pull the rug out from under me. He lets slip a … Continue reading
Cloud Atlas – David Mitchell
This novel begins as the diary of a gentleman’s adventure on a 19th-century pacific island. It’s all quite eventful until it stops, right in the middle of Continue reading
Losing Ourselves – Jay Garfield
This is an exploration of the Buddhist concept of no-self: we don’t exist as a distinct self with an unchanging identity. Instead, we are just the sum of the various thoughts, feelings, emotions and so on that are associated with … Continue reading
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The Summer Book – Tove Jansson
This wise and wistful book narrates many episodes in the life of an old woman living with her young granddaughter Sophia on a remote Finnish island. The relationship between the two is sweet, yet unsentimental. Sophia’s father lives with them … Continue reading