This little novella (60 something pages) is stunning. If you enjoyed any of Gillian Flynn's other boo5/5 ⭐️ Super Fun Read 🎉
Warning: You'll want more!
This little novella (60 something pages) is stunning. If you enjoyed any of Gillian Flynn's other books (I did), you'll be entertained immediately - the first few sentences had me giggling.
The mood is mysterious, rainy fateful mornings, an unnamed anti-hero, and aura readings at Spiritual Palms. Strong female characters. Twist ending.
A sequel in the form of a longer book seems possible. Either way, hopefully there'll be more from Gillian Flynn.
5.5/5 ⭐️'s — Every human should read this book, or at least watch the TED Talk.
What is a feminist? This term continues to change, evolve, and carry a5.5/5 ⭐️'s — Every human should read this book, or at least watch the TED Talk.
What is a feminist? This term continues to change, evolve, and carry a lot of baggage with it. Many women are discouraged from calling themselves feminists because of the underlying implications. A lot of this has to do with being "liked."
How they have been raised to believe that their being likable is very important and that this "likable" trait is a specific thing. And that specific thing does not include showing anger or being aggressive or disagreeing too loudly.
When women are too strong, too vocal, or too fed up with being treated as an inferiors as opposed to equals, they are labeled in negative ways, while a man with the same characteristics is labeled as a leader, a "tough go-getter," even a trailblazer. Women are subject to extremely biased double standards, and these are not disappearing any time soon ... unless we begin to raise our daughters and sons differently.
Girls should not have to "shrink themselves" in order to "cater to the fragile egos of males."
Why is marriage still something women are expected to aspire to, in the modern world?
Our society teaches a woman at a certain age who is unmarried to see it as a deep personal failure. While a man at a certain age who is unmarried has not quite come around to making his pick.
Yes, it's easy to say, resist this, say no to conformity. However, "we internalize ideas from our socialization."
I am angry. If anything can get me riled up, it's women's rights (or lack thereof), and old white men dictating the activity of my uterus.
Gender as it functions today is a grave injustice. We should all be angry. Anger has a long history of bringing about positive change—but in addition to being angry, I'm also hopeful. Because I believe deeply in the ability of human beings to make and remake themselves for the better.
Every sentence strikes a cord, and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie paints a clear picture and summary of gender matters. Adichie first gave her TED Talk in 2012, and the book version was printed in 2014. Unfortunately, gender issues are not any more resolved today.
This photo, and this book should be a rallying cry to all (not just women) who want equality.
[image] "This photograph is what patriarchy looks like – a system of society or government in which men hold the power and women are largely excluded." (Article here.)
*As long as you live you'll never see a photograph of 7 women signing legislation about what men can do with their reproductive organs.*
Things to Keep in Mind
The problem with gender is that it prescribes how we should be rather than recognizing how we are. Imagine how much happier we would be, how much freer to be our true individual selves, if we didn't have the weight of gender expectations.
Both men and women are resistant to talk about gender, or are quick to dismiss the problems of gender. Because thinking of changing the status quo is always uncomfortable.
Some people ask: "Why the word feminist? Why not just say you are a believer in human rights, or something like that?" Because that would be dishonest. Feminism is, of course, part of human rights in general—but to choose to use the vague expression human rights is to deny the specific and particular problem of gender. It would be a way of pretending that it was not women who have, for centuries, been excluded. It would be a way of denying that the problem of gender targets women. That the problem was not about being human, but specifically about being female human. For centuries, the world divided human beings into two groups and then proceeded to exclude and oppress one group. It is only fair that the solution to the problem acknowledge that.
TLDR:
"Culture does not make people. People make culture. If it is true that the full humanity of women is not our culture, then we can and must make it our culture."
"All of us, women and men, must do better."...more
2.5 ⭐️'s rounded up to 3 — Interesting approach for a hard to nail down answer. Most relevant for employers trying to extract optimum performance from2.5 ⭐️'s rounded up to 3 — Interesting approach for a hard to nail down answer. Most relevant for employers trying to extract optimum performance from employees, parents raising children, or those with general curiosity.
We're born to be players, not pawns. We're meant to be autonomous individuals, not individual automatons.
Best predictor of success: Grit. (I actually liked Angela Duckworth's book, "Grit," a little more than this one.)
Second Law of Mastery: Mastery Is A Pain
A lot of this stuff is pretty basic, and seems to be more of a sweeping overview than anything applicable or too in-depth.
As wonderful as flow is, the path to mastery, becoming ever better at something you care about, is not lined with daisies and spanned by a rainbow. If it were, more of us would make the trip.
“Being a professional is doing the things you love to do, on the days you don’t feel like doing them.” — Julius Erving
This book is a good summation of a lot of science and theories put forth by others, including a lengthy book review section at the end. If you're looking for something original or groundbreaking, look elsewhere.
*However,* it is important to note that rewards don't work as a motivating factor. People are more motivated by internal drives, as opposed to external forces. If you want the best work out of people, let them have freedom and flow, don't micromanage, and don't use money as an incentive for creative output.
Even when we do get what we want, it's not always what we need.
The mastery asymptote is a source of frustration. Why reach for something you can never fully attain? But it's also a source of allure. Why not reach for it? The joy is in the pursuit more than the realization. In the end, mastery attracts precisely because mastery eludes.
"But why, some say, the Moon? Why choose this as our goal? And they may well ask, why climb the highest mountain? Why, 35 years ago, fly the Atlantic? Why does Rice play Texas?
We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too."
//
Our business has evolved into a ROWE, and it's much more efficient.
Results Only Work Environment (ROWE): The brainchild of two American consultants, a row is a workplace in which employees don't have schedules. They don't have to be in the office at a certain time, or any time, they just have to get their work done....more
2.5 Stars: Not bad, not great, but still entertaining.
“Tears streamed down her face, sliding over the smooth hard surface of the nightpack like rain o2.5 Stars: Not bad, not great, but still entertaining.
“Tears streamed down her face, sliding over the smooth hard surface of the nightpack like rain on chrome.” (Blade Runner, anyone?)
This audiobook is excellent, and I would definitely recommend it to someone who is a fan of James Franco (he reads it with such vervre! much accent!) and who also enjoyed the John Travolta movie "Phenomenon."
However, it is my least favorite Stephen King book to date. It's not bad, per se, but not especially gripping either. It's entertaining, and stuff happens, but not much in the way of integral plot. The end reminded me of the last 1/3-ish of 11/22/63 — which happens to be one of my all time favorite Stephen King books to date, even though the ending is a tad weak / deus ex machina-y.
Yes, there are some parallels to be drawn with the current president. (See article.)
Other than a slightly chilling prediction of future leaders, this book isn't particularly scary either. It's listed as a "science-fiction thriller," but mild suspense might be a better fit.
“The world was going gray. Ann was still talking but her voice was far and wee, as E.E. Cummings had said about the balloon man. Flocked images tumbling over and over one another, none making sense. The carny wheel. The mirror maze. Johnny’s eyes, strangely violet, almost black. His dear, homely face in the harsh, county fair lighting, naked bulbs strung on electric wire.”
Johnny Smith, the main character, is a pretty vanilla character who happens to have a touch of psychic abilities.
“In no time at all, the quick sand was up to his waist and now it was chest high, sucking at him like great brown lips, constricting his breathing; he began to scream and no one came, nothing came except for a fat brown squirrel that picked its way down the side of the mossy deadfall and perched on his pack and watched him with his bright black eyes.
Now it was up to his neck, the rich brown smell of it in his nose and his screams became thin and gasping as the quicksand implacably pressed the breath out of him. Birds flew swooping and cheeping and scolding, and green shafts of sunlight like tarnished copper fell through the trees, and the quicksand rose over his chin. Alone, he was going to die alone, and he opened his mouth to scream one last time and there was no scream because the quicksand flowed into his mouth, it flowed over his tongue, it flowed between his teeth in thin ribbons, he was swallowing quicksand, and the scream was never uttered—”
Growing up, I was disproportionately afraid of dying in quicksand compared with how much quicksand I’ve actually seen in person. Still, this psychic flash from a man’s death in quicksand was strangely satisfying and reminded me of a couple Shel Silverstein poems.
“Green summer leaves, smoky haze of fall like a memory of cornhusks and men with rakes in mellow dusk. The thud of the big snare drum. Mellow gold trumpets and trombones. School band uniforms …”
There’s no denying that King can paint a pretty picture and really “take you there” with his prose. James Franco completely brings this book to life with his narration — worth it just for the audio chocolate....more
"Lila couldn't believe how tired she felt, how weak, as if she had dribbled out of her uniform and all over her shoes in th2.7 ⭐️'s Rounded up to 3
"Lila couldn't believe how tired she felt, how weak, as if she had dribbled out of her uniform and all over her shoes in the twenty or so paces between the cruiser and the steps. It suddenly seemed as though everything was open to question, and if Clint wasn't Clint, then who was she? Who was anybody?"
This book didn't really grab me, or pull me in, and with some 70 characters, I didn't feel close enough to anyone to care much about them. Clint and Lila Norcross are at the center of the story; they have a cold and distance marriage that doesn't get any better by the end. That's pretty much how I felt reading this book, cold and distant, observing the mechanics of a tale unfold.
Not sure if it was Owen's involvement, or that it was kind of heavy on message. The idea of a world without women is interesting, but I wanted more. Entertaining yes, but a little flat. Part of what I usually enjoy about Stephen King's writing, his beautiful descriptions and settings, were missing. Perhaps it was the ... setting?
It takes place in an impoverished Appalachian town, a women's prison, and another realm where all the women go after they've fallen asleep in their cocoons (sometimes called "bitch-bags"). Nothing too pretty here. (Slightly depressing?)
The Talisman and Black House by Stephen King and Peter Straub are excellent books and still maintained that special King essence. This collaboration seemed diluted, clearly written by men, maybe even related, egging each other on and one-upping each other with their tall tale.
Don't get me wrong, it's entertaining. The women go into homicidal rages if woken up, there's a build up to a big war against two opposing sides—stuff happens (702 pages worth).
Think: Sleeping Beauty and Murakami's 1Q84 mixed in a blender with a dash of steroids, end-of-the-world "Aurora Flu," and social commentary sprinkled on top.
Not the scariest, unless you're afraid of moths.
"Get away!" Judge Silver yelled. He took his hands off the wheel and beat at his face. Moths continued to pour from the vents—hundreds of them, perhaps thousands. The Land Rover's cabin became a swirling brown mist. "Get away, get away, get aw—" A huge weight settled on the left side of his chest. Pain hammered down his left arm like electricity. He opened his mouth to cry out and moths flew in, crawling on his tongue and tickling the lining of his cheeks. With his last struggling breath he pulled them down his throat, where they clogged his windpipe.
TLDR: "Stephen King and Owen King imagine a world where women aren’t woke" (The Washington Post)
Favorite Quotes:
“She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted. —Sen. Addison 'Mitch' McConnell, speaking of Sen. Elizabeth Warren” Opening Quote (*yay*)
"—except that the pretty twenty-something woman who had shown him the hole under the barn had offered him a glass of blue Kool-Aid from the bake sale going on in the parking lot. It had been pretty nasty—watered down, not enough sugar—but Frank drank three dollars' worth in order to stay there in the yellowing churchyard grass talking to the woman, who had a wonderful big laugh and a way of standing with her hands on her hips that made him feel tingly."
"My friends," the professor said in rolling tones, "with all that has happened today, it is easy to understand why we haven't yet thought of tomorrow, and all the tomorrows to come. Let us put morals and morality and hot pants aside for a moment and consider the practicalities."
"In the long run, he suspected niceness didn't pull the plow."
"Oh, sometimes there was a present, or a soft kiss on the back of the neck, or a dinner out (with candlelight!), but those things were just frosting on a stale and hard-to-chew cake. The Cake of Marriage!"
"The air felt like that knife-edge of time when winter teetered on the edge of spring. A few green-tipped buds flashed in the gray-brown of the woods, and where the earth was naked to the sky, it was squishy with melt."
"The sound of his upper and lower jaws parting company was like the sound of a drumstick being torn off a Thanksgiving turkey."
"She wiped the webbing from her eyes, astonished to see a whole ward of women, rising up from their hospital beds, tearing at the shreds of their cocoons in an orgy of resurrection."...more
Bumping my review up to 5 stars, as I have lately been thinking about this book and how it was one of my favorite autumnal reads. After visiting MaineBumping my review up to 5 stars, as I have lately been thinking about this book and how it was one of my favorite autumnal reads. After visiting Maine recently, it's made me re-appreciate the atmospheric charm of Stephen King's home state.
If you're looking for an ideal spooky October read, look no further.
“The town has a sense, not of history, but of time, and the telephone poles seem to know this. If you lay your hand against one, you can feel the vibration from the wires deep within the wood, as if souls had been imprisoned in there and were struggling to get out.”
“But when fall comes, kicking summer out on its treacherous ass as it always does one day sometime after the midpoint of September, it stays awhile like an old friend that you have missed. It settles in the way an old friend will settle into your favorite chair and take out his pipe and light it and then fill the afternoon with stories of places he has been and things he has done since last he saw you.”...more
Enjoyable and quick read. Entertaining sci-fi set in a dystopian/ post apocalyptic future, with robots and flying cars. Colorful character4.5 / 5 ⭐️'s
Enjoyable and quick read. Entertaining sci-fi set in a dystopian/ post apocalyptic future, with robots and flying cars. Colorful characters, starring Rick Deckard, Rachael Rosen, Luba Luft (not a huge character, but I liked her name and she reminded me of the blue singing lady from The Fifth Element), and electronic animals.
You will find yourself considering the possibility of humanoid androids, and inhumane humans. What is it to be human? Can androids develop feelings? What is reality, and are we all just logged in to some artificial program (/The Matrix)?
Watched Blade Runner before reading the book, which didn't ruin anything as they are pretty different. Interested to see where they go with Blade Runner 2049 (2017).
Excellent sci-fi canon. Written in 1968, it still holds up today....more
{ Test, measure, pivot + case studies. } Book in a nutshell. No concrete methodology and elementary advice -- possibly a good book if you're totally c{ Test, measure, pivot + case studies. } Book in a nutshell. No concrete methodology and elementary advice -- possibly a good book if you're totally clueless and haven't actually started a business yet. ...more
*2020 Update* I still think of this book as one of my fLess is more—but better.
Will read again! 5+ stars!
Definitely one of my favorite books of 2017.
*2020 Update* I still think of this book as one of my favorites, and fancy myself as a bit of an essentialist. Might have to revisit soon.
“Essentialism is not about how to get more things done; it’s about how to get the right things done. It doesn’t mean just doing less for the sake of less either. It is about making the wisest possible investment of your time and energy in order to operate at our highest point of contribution by doing only what is essential.”
“You cannot overestimate the unimportance of practically everything.”
“What if we stopped celebrating being busy as a measurement of importance? What if instead we celebrated how much time we had spent listening, pondering, meditating, and enjoying time with the most important people in our lives?” ...more
This book can be easily applied to daily life. Quick read, can see myself reviewing again in the future. Published in 1936 it's still relevant3.5/5 ⭐️
This book can be easily applied to daily life. Quick read, can see myself reviewing again in the future. Published in 1936 it's still relevant today, although I also can't say there was anything particularly new that it revealed. Much of it is common courtesy, bordering on being a suck up.
Especially applicable for business situations, and getting what you want out of people. Although much of it is pretty basic: smile, be positive, encouraging, etc.—it crystallized many things I've subconsciously picked up on over the years.
"A man convinced against his will/Is of the same opinion still."
= Why I don't discuss religion and politics with most of my family. Everyone gets along much better!...more
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