Blurb Your Enthusiasm – Louise Willder
Lots of short pieces relating to the art of the blurb. Initially the pieces seemed fairly light and amusing enough. But I thought the book got better towards the end, with a few pieces on related topics like publishing, cover … Continue reading
This Little Art – Kate Briggs
I love this book. The more I read about translating, the more interesting it seems. It combines close reading with creative writing, psychology (what did the author mean by that phrase? What will the reader understand by this translation?) and … Continue reading
Materialism – Terry Eagleton
Materialism has more than one definition in philosophy, and in this book Terry Eagleton discusses how they are treated by his cover stars Marx, Nietzsche and Wittgenstein (mostly). There is a lot of information about these three and others such … Continue reading
It Lasts Forever And Then It’s Over – Anne de Marcken
This is a zombie book. But the zombies in this book are not mindless monsters baying for “braaains”. They are the same ordinary people they were before becoming zombies, with ordinary thoughts and plans, except they also need to kill … Continue reading
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