Currently reading...

I read this to be a little better prepared for the third term, third year advertising project. I think I am. I should read a few more in this series...

Available in the KNG library!

The Guardian said it was one of the 100 best books of the twenty-first century...wow, I thought, I have to read that. I did. It was great. Just really good, and sad, storytelling. 

Available in the KNG library!

Wow, this was much better than I thought it was going to be. To be honest, I judged this book by both its cover and its title. I didn't like it. But the characters were solid and this was a great read. The only thing I would have liked is to hear or get the cop's side of the story. It was too easy to hate the 'bad guy' when maybe there is a little more to his side of the story.

Music Book 5

Man, I love Ozzy. Some of this autobiography was over the top and ridiculous, but that is the way he lived. RIP to the Prince of Darkness. Alongside this book I listened to his discography, 5 Black Sabbath albums and 13 solo albums. Nothing bad, just some a little forgettable. Not bad, Ozzy, not bad at all.

I feel that musicians and artists in general need a way to listen and/or see the work of the artist in question as you go through the book. Sort of a biography 2.0 the super cut. 

I can't really explain why I loved this book so much but I devoured it and was sad when it was done. Great character driven story. Just wow. Please read.

I liked this, I didn't read them in order but I think I liked the books in their publication order, a little more in each one, and this one was the second newest and I think I liked it second best. The Felix character was very unique and original. Good stuff.

I read a lot of Rooney these past few months and starting to pick up on some themes...distant mother, useless/alcoholic father, sexual fluidity, unhealthy family dynamics, unhealthy relationships with friends and lovers...I guess fiction needs drama, but I hope Sally is happy.

Put this one down for a while but very glad I finished it. The biggest takeaway from this book is that Canadian history, the part when Europeans started coming and messing with Canada, is much much longer than confederacy and some people were much, much nicer and better people than others. Some very cool stories about a very wild Canada.

I didn't like this as much as Intermezzo, but wow were the decisions of these people relatable, especially the bad high school decisions. Sally Rooney knows people.

A lot like I expected, the content was great and although it was very focused intentionally in the US, the ideas for the most part could resonate. I really liked the author's style and southern charm...it added a lot. Unfortunately I see the divide growing more and spreading internationally a little more before the pendulum swings the other way. For now, I will do my part.

This was so-so and I was hoping for a few more laugh out loud moments. I really like Steve Martin but other than a few fleeting moments of really funny little stories or comments I felt this was a little bit dry and maybe I should have read it when it came out in 1998. Still love him but maybe it was too timely.

This feminist version of 1984 written from the point of view of Julie (Her) was fantastic! It really added to the story and gave a really good second perspective. I read this alongside 1984 and it was a great addition to the story. Written with the support of the George Orwell foundation. Double Plus Good!

This was my first time reading this. I started it a few times and never got too far. Like Animal Farm it is really hard NOT to see some of the book's ideas being used by certain current western administrators...and not in a good way. It was great to read alongside the much more recent Julia (ABOVE) and have a modern and feminist point of view at the same time. Good stuff.

Available in the KNG library!

Culture Series Book 5

Apparently this was a novel in the Culture series that wasn't a Culture novel...according to the author. It was a really fun read and added a great little side story to The Culture as they navigate alien planets and cultures that are much less advanced than they are. Two characters are advanced aliens in the world and playing interesting roles. Yeah, fun.

Music Book 4

This. Was. Amazing. 

Wow.

Can't recommend it enough. A deep dive into all the instruments, including some unusual ones, and some amazing, and just the right length, examples. It is on Spotify and Apple Music and I hope more people. It should be in Japanese and I might contact the publisher to tell them that.

Wow, this was bonkers. So basically Apple has been dumping billions (with a capital B) into China and developing some super engineers and some Apple supply chain companies and many of those super people have started their own now very successful companies and technology building a very strong base for China to be the tech leader for a generation. This video can give you an overview of the crazy. Wow.

This was a little long winded at times but it is written in a different time with a very different style, but it was hard not to like it because of the glaring similarities to today's US administration and its walk towards fascism. Like a mirror and spooky. It could do with a modern re-edit to tighten it up and it could be a fantastic, and hyperrealistic, dystopic book.

I really want to like this book more. It was read by the author and he is American and very angry and pissed off. His tone was very aggressive and angry and it was hard to enjoy. I don't hold it against him, but he spent a long time just giving examples of racism he has seen and experienced and everything was racism related. I guess that is what structural racism is. I guess I did learn that I am not an antiracist, I am not racist (I don't think?), but not antiracist by any of his definitions.

I have a confession. Sometimes I see people reading a book and I start reading that book and then force an ad hoc book club. I sort of try to read it faster than them too...a bit of positive pressure. Anyway, Wani was reading this and I recognized the author and so I started. Wow, it was so goodT The characters were so well developed and so real. What a writer. Can't wait to talk to her about the book...she is still reading at the time of this writing. I am going to start another book by this author soon.

A super unique premise that got me instantly intrigued and for the most part this story about a language school that promises full immersion in 2 weeks, was pretty crazy. How they do it was also crazy and a lot of fun. The two main characters are Pakistani and Indian females and that gave the whole story a different vibe than I am used to. Except for a few spots that I didn't love, this was fantastic.

Recommended by a friend, and I always read a book that someone tells me I have to read. A bit of a light mystery, some plot holes, but a lot of fun with some unique characters and some choices that I did not expect. The big reveal was annoying though because there was no way to see it coming and wasn't developed at all as a storyline, just a big "Gotcha! Didn't see that coming did ya!?" out of nowhere. No, I did not see it coming because no one could.

Music Book 3

I read this because my daughter is very interested in music history but it was much, much better than I thought it would be...I can see why she likes it so much. This was a total pleasure and the musical clips that played alongside it made it sound a lot more like a radio broadcast or a podcast than a book.

There are 2 more in this series that I am looking forward to. The History of Opera & The History of the Musical.

A pretty short book on 2 things I love. Star Wars and Behavioral Economics. It kicked ass like the rebels in The Return of the Jedi. Can't recommend enough..but if you don't like Star Wars and Behavioral Economics it might not be for you.

(This year I am going to read another Sunstein book, Can It Happen Here? Authoritarianism in America, as a non-fiction pairing to book number 17...stay tuned) 

This was surprisingly awesome. A super unique story with one of the main characters being a smartass cocky octopus (voiced by the perfect voice actor Michael Urie). Just a simple human drama about aging, loneliness, a lack of direction and regret. Sounds sad, but it isn't. Great stuff and they just finished shooting the movie for Netflix...not sure how they will do the octopus though...very curious.

Music Book 2

This was a lot less about music than I thought, and it was a bit of a dud, but it was rather short, so I can't complain too much. Just a really simple self-help book, from what I can only assume from his constant reminders, a very hard working musician...a musician that I have never heard of. Forgettable and pretty meh.

A book I have been planning to read for a pretty long time. This was a super creative and philosophical exploration of imaginary cities. It was awesome. Wiki explained it better: "a conversation between the Mongol emperor Kublai Khan, and Marco Polo. The majority of the book consists of brief prose poems describing 55 fictitious cities that are narrated by Polo, many of which can be read as commentary on culture, language, time, memory, death, or human experience generally." Yeah, that.

Many wow. This book was awesome, shocking, jaw-dropping, and even if it is written from a disgruntled former employee, probably some bias, and only half of it is true, it is still shocking and everyone should quit Meta. They suck. Hard. Full stop. 

Culture Series Book 4

I read online that this is many people's favorite book in the Culture series but I found it a little bit of a struggle to get into. Now, I do have a problem with reading too many books at the same time and I have noticed that this series requires more attention for a more sustained period and that could add to the issue. Still good, but I may need to revisit this one. I don't think it was awful, but I agree with many of the complaints of this Redditor.

Available in the KNG library!

A little long, but this was really good. Hard to recommend this to anyone without an interest in science, but it really puts in a long and clear format the ridiculousness of our current statistical situation. Really good, but yeah pretty long. I can'T see it changing though unfortunately

Originally it was published under a man's name because the publisher thought it would sell better...sexism in a book about racism....hmmm. This was really good and it had a pretty awesome little twist at the end. Payback if you will. It is very prescient, or at least very fitting to a lot of the racism going on around the world but especially in the USA under the current administration. Not a long read and should be mandatory.

Music Book 1

The first book about music was a banger and the reason for the new goal. This was awesome and it really hit home with a playlist I found. So I was listening to the songs alongside the book. This author/musician is inspired and was inspiring in how important music is. He loves so many genres of music, so that made me very happy. Here is the playlist on Spotify.

Because this beast is at least 3 books and I finished this this year. A slog, but the last section was really good. I guess a slog interspersed with greatness. I do get what people seem to go on about, like this book goes on, and on, and on, but, yeah, good but a little too long.