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Ask HN: Any interesting books you have read lately?

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Re: Ask HN: Any interesting books you have read lately?

#51

Post by SubGenius »

wenc wrote: post #21
SubGenius wrote: post #14

I read through most of PG Wodehouse this year. 'Ukridge' is perhaps the funniest collection of stories ever written, it's magic. I love all the books set in Blandings. While the Jeeves books were not my favorite when I was younger, I really really enjoy them now.

I've always been a fan the Jeeves series -- Blandings not so much. I also like the Psmith books. I need to try Ukridge.

I've only read the first Psmith book set in Blandings - Leave it to Psmith. It's absolutely hilarious.

If you like Ukridge, then you could also read 'Love Amount the Chickens', which features the Ukridge character.

Re: Ask HN: Any interesting books you have read lately?

#52

Post by sien »

Generations by Gene Twenge sticks in mind.

It has loads of interesting stats on how generations have changed.

It still amazes me to find out that in the 1950s in the US half of brides were teenagers. The average age of having a child was similarly super low compared to now.

My review is at:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61273798-generations

Re: Ask HN: Any interesting books you have read lately?

#53

Post by jemmyw »

Blindsight and Echopraxia by Peter Watts [1] I enjoyed the ideas in these books.

The Sunken Land Begins to Rise Again [2] by M. John Harrison. Beautiful writing. His descriptions give me vivid dreams if I read before bed.

The Thursday Murder Club [3] by Richard Osman. Light reading, amusing, beginning of a series.

[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echopraxia_(novel)

[2] https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49201192-the-sunken-land...

[3] https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/54846475-the-thursday-mu...

Re: Ask HN: Any interesting books you have read lately?

#54

Post by jdshaffer »

yla92 wrote: post #22

Finished reading The Three-Body Problem (Book 1) and it's such a fascinating read! https://www.amazon.com/Three-Body-Problem-Remembrance-Earths...

I enjoyed most of book 1, then it suddenly went "slapstick" with the alien engineers at the end. That really turned me off to the rest of the series.

However, for those who have read books 2 and beyond, does the writing return to serious and deep or does a slapstick element remain?

Re: Ask HN: Any interesting books you have read lately?

#55

Post by AareyBaba »

jryb wrote: post #9

Just finished my third reading of The Making of the Atomic Bomb by Richard Rhodes. It really ruined most other history books for me by setting the bar so high.

You might like the 'The Prize' by Daniel Yergin on the history of petroleum and which also won the Pulitzer Prize.

Re: Ask HN: Any interesting books you have read lately?

#56

Post by firedev »

Sakos wrote: post #43

The Mind Illuminated - Comprehensive meditation guide that comes at it for an non-theistic/religious/spiritual perspective. Everything you ever wanted to know about meditation without having to go through books about Buddhism or meditation which are generally very spiritual and can be difficult to read. The Attention Revolution - In-depth guide to how to meditate without too much fluff. It basically directly goes int…

Thanks. I opened this thread to see this.

Re: Ask HN: Any interesting books you have read lately?

#57

Post by firedev »

vogelke wrote: post #47

"Fatherland" by Robert Harris, 1992. Alternative history detective novel set in a universe in which Nazi Germany won World War II. "Zen and the art of Motorcycle Maintenance" by Robert Pirsig. I re-read this every 4-5 years just to enjoy the discussions about quality and why it matters.

I’ve started Pirsig a couple of times it just doesn’t click. Could you elaborate a bit?

Re: Ask HN: Any interesting books you have read lately?

#58

Post by jemmyw »

esperent wrote: post #42
SubGenius wrote: post #14

I read through most of PG Wodehouse this year. 'Ukridge' is perhaps the funniest collection of stories ever written, it's magic. I love all the books set in Blandings. While the Jeeves books were not my favorite when I was younger, I really really enjoy them now.

Wodehouse is amazing. Tied with Pratchett for the best humorist writer in my opinion. I've searched a lot to find more humorist writers but it's a very limited genre. Most comedy writing is too cynical for me. By contrast Wodehouse and Pratchett manage to be funny while also being uplifting. Does anyone have any recommendations for not-too-cynical humorist authors beside these two?

The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman. Not as good as Wodehouse or Pratchett but I found the series amusing and not cynical.

Re: Ask HN: Any interesting books you have read lately?

#59

Post by rewmie »

baron816 wrote: post #46

It’s been probably a year since I read The WEIRDest People in the World by Joseph Henrich, but the ideas in there have really stuck in my head. The WEIRD acronym stands for Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic. The thesis is that the Christian Church inadvertently created modern society by prohibiting polygamy and cousin marriage. The topic of polygamy is what’s really stuck in my head. Polygamy is…

> Polygamy isn’t technically legal or common, but you still have plenty of people who have many romantic partners—just not at the same time.

I don't think those two are the same. Polygamy is a way to structure society and determine access to resources, whereas fooling around on Tinder is just a way to have fun with no questions asked. It might surprise you but the plebes of old were also promiscuous.

Here's an interesting discussion on the topic:

https://www.reddit.com/r/history/comments/5rre85/sexuality_d...

Re: Ask HN: Any interesting books you have read lately?

#60

Post by jemmyw »

namanyayg wrote: post #41
powersnail wrote: post #17

I've recently finished , and absolutely love it. The style is one of clarity, tenderness, and honesty, and just plain beautiful in the section where---avoiding spoilers---they journeyed through the ice sheet, which is such a breath-taking portrayal of that environmental harshness, the human vulnerability, and the tenacity of will. It's often classified as Sci-fi, but there's nothing particularly sciency or techy abou…

I read this book myself a few weeks ago. Ursula's work is great, it's strange that I never heard about her before. I also finished another of her works, "The Word for World is Forest", just last week. This one is more about human nature. It is again brilliant, I could not put it down, and I highly recommend it especially to those already familiar with her writing. I'll probably be picking up more of her books after I…

I read all of her Earthsea books last year. I thought they were really excellent. I started left hand but couldn't get into it.
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