Book Recommendations?

Gods and Legionnaires by Jason A. and Nick Cole.

This is probably my favorite out of all of their "Galaxy's Edge" series and spin offs. The major pre conflict war of the series and told from the villains.

I haven't read The Grapes of Wrath, either. I'll add that to the list, right after the Mote in God's Eye. Thanks for the suggestion.

It's one I feel like I should read again. I hated it in high school. To be fair, it was probably a mistake to follow a fun mystery (The Name of the Rose) with the most depressing book I've ever read. My lasting memory of the book is that nothing good happens to the characters. It's one bad situation after another.

I wonder if I'd view it differently as an adult living in the 2020 hellscape.

Edit: That said, I did finish it, which is more than I can say for any of the Jane Austen novels we were assigned to read.

Embarrassing confession: I was actually thinking of Steinbeck's East of Eden. Also highly recommended.

billt721 wrote:

My lasting memory of the book is that nothing good happens to the characters. It's one bad situation after another.

There are moments of joy and celebration peppering the mostly dismal tale of a family who is slowly losing everything. You know... the human condition.

Billt721, you should try "Pride and Prejudice" as an adult. Great story.

I just finished this story and thought it was great. I’m glad Tor still has it available.

A Window or a Small Box

Malor wrote:

I haven't read The Grapes of Wrath, either. I'll add that to the list, right after the Mote in God's Eye. Thanks for the suggestion.

I'll save you some time with the best plot summary ever. (No spoilers)

I am woefully incompetent when it comes to understanding people, both individually and en masse. I am possessed of some magical-thinking hand-wavy ideas about how people develop their worldviews that lead them to either aspire to some notion of absolute individualism, or aspire to some notion of altruism. (There's probably something pithy to be said here but, like my prologue says on the tin, I'm incapable of making it.)

You won't be surprised to hear that searching for sources on the philosophy of individualism, on the internet, returns quite a few results. I've already read (and to the horror of many, including me, enjoyed) Atlas Shrugged, so I don't really need more 56-page monologues on the virtue of selfishness. But skimming through an excerpt of Friedrich Hayek's Individualism and Economic Order points me to Alexis de Toqueville, Alex Smith, David Hume, and John Locke among others and, yeah, I could stand to read them. But I barely [have, make] time for reading as it is (though I'll take this opportunity to plug Mira Grant's Feed which along with its two sequels I finished and really enjoyed), so I kinda think that path isn't practical. Not right now anyway.

So, does anyone have a particular primer or reflection on the topic of, I guess it's okay to call it "individualism vs. communalism"? Something that maybe collects the thoughts of all those big heads with some critical evaluation, so I can (a) challenge my presumptions and (b) follow direct or indirect bibliographic references for further reading? I'm skimming through this Encyclopedia Britannica entry which isn't rubbish, but wouldn't mind a nice book.

Individualism to Collectivism is a scale, not a dichotomy. Just remember, when you start with Rand, you're stepping way outside the mainstream of philosophy that Hume, Locke and the rest of the big names inhabit. It's like studying the roots of modern medicine and adding in Samuel Hahnemann "because a lot of people buy homeopathic stuff". Lots of people like Rand, but not because they have deeply thought about the implications and origins of her philosophy. They like it because it gives simple answers to life's problems, just like homeopathy gives simple answers to questions about medicine. Both put the cart before the horse, though, and end up on the wrong path.

Robear wrote:

Individualism to Collectivism is a scale, not a dichotomy. Just remember, when you start with Rand, you're stepping way outside the mainstream of philosophy that Hume, Locke and the rest of the big names inhabit. It's like studying the roots of modern medicine and adding in Samuel Hahnemann "because a lot of people buy homeopathic stuff". Lots of people like Rand, but not because they have deeply thought about the implications and origins of her philosophy. They like it because it gives simple answers to life's problems, just like homeopathy gives simple answers to questions about medicine. Both put the cart before the horse, though, and end up on the wrong path.

I'm not actually starting with Rand. I read her book ignorant of its part to play in making from selfishness a philosophical doctrine, and only later did I learn the origins of her anger and the use to which her work was put, by her and others. I only mentioned having read Atlas Shrugged as an offhand snip at that particular brand of extreme individualism.

I’ve been devouring Brené Brown’s books, both in print and audiobook format. I’m doing with them the same thing that I did to the Skeptics Guide to the Universe book, which is I’m reading and listening to them repeatedly to try to fully internalize the material.

The Skeptics Guide pertains mostly to critical thinking concepts. I’ve got a pretty good handle on those concepts now, and I have to say that achieving that goal has changed my life in a very positive way. I’ll come back to that book in the future for a healthy refresher and hopefully I will be able to find at least one other great book on critical thinking.

Brené Brown’s books deal mostly with shame, vulnerability, and bravery, so more on the emotional side of things. Her books are based on her own research and do incorporate critical thinking to some degree. They almost read like self-help books, but the concepts are based on solid research, rather than the woo that is so prevalent in the self-help genre. Brené’s concepts are already affecting me in a very positive way. I’m looking forward to the time when I have internalized her books to the same degree that I’ve done with critical thinking.

At some point I’ll probably start a new thread on this stuff. Maybe there are some other Goodjers who read Brené Brown.

Thanks for clarifying, Muraii. Your post read like you were considering her stuff as reasonable.

Critical thinking is one of the most valuable skills I got from my time in college. It's amazing how much you can do in whatever field you are in with a structured method of thought, there when you need it. (It's also dismaying to watch what is going on in politics from that viewpoint, but...).

Just finished Humble Pi: A Comedy of Math Errors by Matt Parker.

Enjoyed it. It's humorous (and scary) in the way of the XKCD stuff by Randall Munroe.

The audiobook is actually narrated by the author, and he does a pretty good job.

I want to recommend The Gone World by Tom Sweterlitsch. Thematically it is science fiction about time travel. But it is much more. I read it in two days, and I am a very slow reader. I couldn't put it down.

maverickz wrote:

I want to recommend The Gone World by Tom Sweterlitsch. Thematically it is science fiction about time travel. But it is much more. I read it in two days, and I am a very slow reader. I couldn't put it down.

I'll second this recommendation. I've always had a soft spot for time travel stories, and this is one of the best.

I finished the audiobook of Every Heart a Doorway today. It was very good and the ending made me all verklempt. It was only about 5 hours long so I’m guessing it’s a novella. It’s also the first in a series. Based on this one I will be looking into the rest of the series.

I think it was recommended to me in this thread, but I’m not sure. If it was one of y’all, then thank you.

RawkGWJ wrote:

I finished the audiobook of Every Heart a Doorway today. It was very good and the ending made me all verklempt. It was only about 5 hours long so I’m guessing it’s a novella. It’s also the first in a series. Based on this one I will be looking into the rest of the series.

I think it was recommended to me in this thread, but I’m not sure. If it was one of y’all, then thank you.

Yup, the whole series is novella-length

CaptainCrowbar wrote:
maverickz wrote:

I want to recommend The Gone World by Tom Sweterlitsch. Thematically it is science fiction about time travel. But it is much more. I read it in two days, and I am a very slow reader. I couldn't put it down.

I'll second this recommendation. I've always had a soft spot for time travel stories, and this is one of the best.

An excellent recommendation! Powered through it last night - kept me up late finishing, but so worth it!

Just picked up Tom Sweterlitsch's second book, Tomorrow and Tomorrow. Hope it's as good as his first!

Apologies if this has come up before, but looking at to dip into the world of E-Readers again as physical books are slow to ship and largely out of stock all over.

Anyone have any thoughts or reviews on their current e-readers? I was looking at the Kindle Paperwhite versus the Oasis. One is half the price of the other, but the night reading feature seems almost worth it for someone who is very conscious of their blue light exposure. Look forward to your opinions!

staygold wrote:

Apologies if this has come up before, but looking at to dip into the world of E-Readers again as physical books are slow to ship and largely out of stock all over.

Anyone have any thoughts or reviews on their current e-readers? I was looking at the Kindle Paperwhite versus the Oasis. One is half the price of the other, but the night reading feature seems almost worth it for someone who is very conscious of their blue light exposure. Look forward to your opinions!

You should probably get your eyes on a Paperwhite, as the e-ink part is dealing with most of the eye strain, I think. Maybe that differs from person to person? Automatic light adjustment and color seem not worth it to me.

Page turn buttons on the other hand, hmmm.

Danjo Olivaw wrote:
staygold wrote:

Apologies if this has come up before, but looking at to dip into the world of E-Readers again as physical books are slow to ship and largely out of stock all over.

Anyone have any thoughts or reviews on their current e-readers? I was looking at the Kindle Paperwhite versus the Oasis. One is half the price of the other, but the night reading feature seems almost worth it for someone who is very conscious of their blue light exposure. Look forward to your opinions!

You should probably get your eyes on a Paperwhite, as the e-ink part is dealing with most of the eye strain, I think. Maybe that differs from person to person? Automatic light adjustment and color seem not worth it to me.

Page turn buttons on the other hand, hmmm.

The Oasis is e-ink too I think? The big difference is that the Oasis is waterproof, IIRC.

I thought so. So in my opinion you get most of the value, e-ink, with the cheaper option.

Tanglebones wrote:
Danjo Olivaw wrote:
staygold wrote:

Apologies if this has come up before, but looking at to dip into the world of E-Readers again as physical books are slow to ship and largely out of stock all over.

Anyone have any thoughts or reviews on their current e-readers? I was looking at the Kindle Paperwhite versus the Oasis. One is half the price of the other, but the night reading feature seems almost worth it for someone who is very conscious of their blue light exposure. Look forward to your opinions!

You should probably get your eyes on a Paperwhite, as the e-ink part is dealing with most of the eye strain, I think. Maybe that differs from person to person? Automatic light adjustment and color seem not worth it to me.

Page turn buttons on the other hand, hmmm.

The Oasis is e-ink too I think? The big difference is that the Oasis is waterproof, IIRC.

The current Paperwhite is also water resistant. I know as my cat knocked a glass of tea over all over mine. I love my Paperwhite but I do miss the physical page turn buttons from my old third gen Kindle.

I’ve read with my paperwhite in the tub and dunked it once to test it
For tub reading I take it out of its case.

I have both, and the Paperwhite will get the job done. The Oasis will get the job done with a sleek style and slightly larger screen with a bit better lighting.

Both, however, do the job just fine.

I have an old keyboard Kindle that I use from time to time and I've read with it in the tub after putting it in a ziplock baggie, so even the older versions can be made waterproof.

If you know you're going to love using an e-reader to the point of using it all the time and really get a lot out of all the nifty, sleek features the Oasis provides, then nothing wrong with spending the money if you have it.

Otherwise, get a Paperwhite. I think a Paperwhite is really the best value for the money spent, and you're not out a good chunk of it if your excitement over an e-reader lasts a week or two and you end up mostly going back to physical books.

Also you can try one out and return it if you don't like it.

When I got my husband to finally use my older kindle, he found he loves it and is sad if he has to read on his phone now

I love the ability to enlarge text so I can read without my glasses. I can see getting one with a larger screen when I have to enlarge even more. Very glad to have the option!