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Post by sprite on May 2, 2021 3:49:16 GMT -5
And to kick off May, I have a book to give away!
I't s a publisher's proof, so it can't be sold, including in charity shops. Also, as a proof, there are a few places where the author refers to a table/graph and it's marked on the page but not actually there.
The Double X Economy, Linda Scott
She gives an illuminating view of just how little of the world's land and wealth belongs to women, along with a brief history from hunter gatherers up till today of how restrictive women's economic rights have been. Then she gives a convincing argument for how economics could improve if women had more access to land, capital, financial independence, and business connections (investors, supply lines, etc). Her examples range from free period products for Ugandan schoolgirls, Avon in South Africa, hotels in Moldova, and Walmart in the USA. She looks at why affordaable childcare is an economic necessity.
If you liked 'Invisible Women' you might enjoy this. It was another one I couldn't read at night because it made me angry, even though she's often sharing success stories.
THe heart of the matter, from her perspective, is that economists do not want to believe economics can be gendered. (Economics is one of the most male-dominated fields.) Any cases where men and women have overall different outcomes is attributed to some sort of personal fault, like, "women just aren't very entrepenurial." She gives quite a bit of evidence otherwise.
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Post by Liiisa on May 2, 2021 5:53:17 GMT -5
I'd read that for sure, sprite, but I don't want you to have to spend all the $$ shipping it over here, so I'll keep an eye out.
Anyway, bookmarking, thank you. I am still about halfway through a nonfiction book on World War II espionage, which is not really my thing but interesting nonetheless.
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Post by ozziegiraffe on May 2, 2021 6:19:23 GMT -5
Bookmarking. Thank you, Sprite. I’ve never studied economics, but I have the impression that much of it doesn’t take in the laws of thermodynamics, and is environmentally unsound. The fact that it has a gender bias doesn’t surprise me at all.
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Post by sprite on May 2, 2021 15:05:11 GMT -5
Piranesi, Susannah Clark.
Someone here recommended it, and it finally came up on my hold list. But then I realised that it was by the author or Jonathan Norrel and Mr Strange (those two) and that was the book that never ended. I was terrified. Luckily, it only had about 270 pages.
It started quite strangely but pleasantly, told by a man who lives in a series of halls filled with statues. he is both indoors and outdoors, with the sea below him, complete with tides, winds, and rains.
Who is he? How did he get there? Who is The Other who visits him once a week, and where does he get his gifts? Why is The Other so worried about possible visitors?
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Post by HalcyonDaze on May 3, 2021 2:03:36 GMT -5
The Linda Scott book is at my library, but as I already have a stack a mile high to read I'll hold off on reserving it for now.
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Post by scrubb on May 3, 2021 12:39:54 GMT -5
Yesterday I finished "Island of a Thousand Mirrors" by Nayomi Munaweera. About Sri Lanka during the civil war.
It was very good, but had slightly too much beautiful writing and not quite enough character development. There was lots of tragedy but I was never involved enough to feel any of it. It does make an effort to show that both sides were at fault and corrupt, without going very deep into the politics or history, and focusing on how it did or didn't affect the people living there and also the families who left.
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Post by ozziegiraffe on May 3, 2021 19:47:38 GMT -5
33. Pineapple Mystery Box, Amy Vansant. A light-hearted, improbable cozy mystery set in a Florida retirement community.
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Post by lillielangtry on May 4, 2021 0:38:29 GMT -5
Thanks sprite! scrubb Thanks for drawing my attention to that one, I might read it for my book for Sri Lanka, we'll see #23 Margaret Atwood, Maddaddam I reread the third in Atwood's trilogy. Right after I started I wondered why on earth I was doing that, because it's set in a world in which most of humanity has been wiped out by a horrific pandemic. But then I got swept up in Atwood's genius. Although she can be horrifying, she's also very funny. #24 Rumena Buzarovska, Mein Mann (translated from the Macedonian by Benjamin Langer, has also been translated into English by Paul Filev as My Husband) A volume of short stories from North Macedonia, each of which has a female narrator and somehow focuses on her relationship with her husband. But they're all very different - some funny, some sad, and the last one contains one of the most awful sex scenes I think I've ever read! Buzarovska is absolutely a master of the short story, she can conjure up such an atmosphere in a few pages. There are common themes, not surprisingly, such as gender roles, but the individual stories do not blend into each other. My Serbian friend tells me she is the latest big thing among literature fans in the Balkan region and I can see why. Really highly recommended if you like short stories. |
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Post by sophie on May 4, 2021 9:44:17 GMT -5
How to Pronounce Knife by Souvankham Thammavongsa. Stunning collection of short stories. Author is of Laotian descent and many of the stories reflect realities of immigrants stuck in a low paying service job in a society they don’t completely understand. Her writing style is sparse, to the point and sharply observant. Highly recommended.
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Post by lillielangtry on May 4, 2021 10:21:50 GMT -5
Ah, this is great, because I haven't read a book from Laos yet either! I do look for someone living in the country or writing in the language, if possible, but for many countries there just haven't been any women published except from the diaspora.
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Post by scrubb on May 4, 2021 20:17:53 GMT -5
Thanks sprite! scrubb Thanks for drawing my attention to that one, I might read it for my book for Sri Lanka, we'll see She is American-Sri Lankan - her family immigrated during the war (and that's a lot of the story she tells) - but she was born there. Today I finished: Disturbed in Their Nests: A Journey from Sudan's Dinkaland to San Diego's City Heights by Alephonsion Deng and Judy A. Bernstein This book alternates chapters written by a woman in the US who gets involved with a Refugee settlement program for "Lost Boys" from Sudan, and chapters written by one of the Lost Boys. It is mostly Judy's book with more chapters by her, but the format really works well, as it's fascinating to compare her take on an interaction with his take on the same interaction. He, along with 2 of his relatives (also discussed in this book) wrote their own book too, that I would like to read. |
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Post by lillielangtry on May 5, 2021 1:22:51 GMT -5
Thanks sprite! scrubb Thanks for drawing my attention to that one, I might read it for my book for Sri Lanka, we'll see She is American-Sri Lankan - her family immigrated during the war (and that's a lot of the story she tells) - but she was born there. I don't currently have another (woman) author in Sri Lanka and published in English/German, I don't think. I noted down the name Sunethra Rajakarunanayake but it seems like her book is out of print and hard to get hold of, plus the book you read sounds really good, which is also important! #25 Agatha Christie, Murder in Mesopotamia I decided to relax with a Poirot mystery. It was fun to read, although, argh, the comments about Arabs were not too great! (the narrator, a young nurse, is also suspicious of Poirot as a Belgian and we are clearly supposed to find that amusing, so I assume we can take comments like "they don't understand you unless you shout" as a joke, but even so, times have changed!). Also, the solution rested on something that I didn't believe - and I'm not talking about the usual suspension of disbelief in a crime novel like this, but rather within the world of the book itself. Still, that makes it sound like I didn't enjoy it, which I did! |
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Post by mei on May 6, 2021 10:27:06 GMT -5
#6 for the year (I think): Radical Remission, surviving cancer against all odds - by Kelly A. Turner.
Not a 'fun' read but I am happy that I did, after a friend lent it to me. Admittedly, for some parts I had to put aside my scepticism a bit, but overall the book is very informative and discusses cases of 'radical remission', terminal cancer patients who've become healthy again, and what they have done to do so. The book doesn't say 'this cures cancer' but describes several things that all these people have done with some nuance. I liked it for that, and it's very hopeful and inspiring.
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Post by Liiisa on May 6, 2021 18:53:06 GMT -5
9) Kurt Singer, Spies and Traitors of World War II
If there is a record for obtaining a book, holding onto it, and then finally after some time getting around to reading it, I think I win with this one. I took this book out of the school library in 1971 -- just about 50 years ago! and somehow have been carrying it around with me ever since without ever reading it. And finally, I read it!
So: after all this time, it was kind of interesting. It was written by a journalist and was a series of short pieces on espionage during WW2. If you're a WW2 history buff I would think it would be very interesting. I'm not really, but it kept my attention. Why did I even take it out? I guess I was kind of into James Bond at the time.
In retrospect what is most interesting is that it was published in 1945, so a lot of the stories were events in progress. So when I was interested in some person being described, I looked them up on wikipedia, and had a couple of real surprises that I guess the author had no idea about at the time! Life is weird like that, isn't it.
Now I'm going to give it to my mom since she is a WW2 history enthusiast and also since she probably paid the fine for me never returning this book in 1971.
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Post by sophie on May 6, 2021 19:18:24 GMT -5
What a great book story!! Yes, Liisa. You win that!!
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Post by scrubb on May 6, 2021 21:51:09 GMT -5
Very cool book story, Liiiiisa. And I love the idea of catching up on those people's stories later.
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Post by sprite on May 7, 2021 7:10:58 GMT -5
Burial Rites, Hannah Kent
I really wish I'd read this book before we went to Iceland on holiday, because we were nearthe area where it takes place.
Agnes is one of 3 people sentenced to death for the murder of her employer/lover. There are no prisons in Iceland, so she stays with a local family, in what turns out to be the first farm she ever worked in as a child, but with different residents. The parents, who have two daughters, are less than thrilled.
Agnes tells her story to both the reader and a priest, and other characters talk about her as well. It's based on a real trial, but the book is written well enough that the reader wonders what will happen in the end.
The author is Australian, but it really did feel like I was there, in the dark little crofts, freezing every time I stepped outside the door.
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Post by HalcyonDaze on May 7, 2021 7:16:31 GMT -5
Burial Rites was one of the favourite reads of my book club.
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Post by lillielangtry on May 7, 2021 8:29:02 GMT -5
Great story Liiisa! I also enjoyed Burial Rites and have recommended it. It had a similar feeling (and theme) to Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood, which I also liked - and I've watched half the Netflix series off, I must finish that off sometime. #26 Hyeonseo Lee, The Girl with Seven Names Lee's memoir of leaving North Korea and making a new life for herself, first in China and then eventually in South Korea with her family. This is generally a good memoir although I felt it dragged a little towards the end. Lee was relatively privileged in North Korea so she did not suffer from the extremes of hunger that some of her countrypeople did. She comes from near the border with China, so there was some contact with the relative freedom of that country too. The main feature of her eventual establishment in South Korea with her mother and brother is a long succession of bribes and bureaucracy, including a fairly awful experience in Laos. If you like autobiographies, this might be a good one, but equally you could probably just watch her TED talk. |
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Post by sprite on May 7, 2021 8:54:28 GMT -5
I did not know Alias Grace was a TV series! I also didn't know that burial rites was a movie, will have a look for it.
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Post by Liiisa on May 8, 2021 14:21:56 GMT -5
Out of my stash of 1950s pulp sci-fi I dug out the following:
10) Frederik Pohl and C. M. Kornbluth, Search the Sky
This is billed as a satire, which is good since if it were serious it would have been truly absurd, but you never know with 1950 sci-fi. Spoiler alert: it's got to do with genetic drift. There's an equation that keeps coming up in the book which seemed vaguely familiar, and so I did some searching trying to see if I could find it somewhere because surely that was part of the joke, but after a certain point I decided I'd devoted enough time to it because maybe they just made it up.
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Post by ozziegiraffe on May 8, 2021 17:36:04 GMT -5
Liiisa, if you read as much sci-fi as I did in the 60s and 70s, it may be familiar from another book.
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Post by Liiisa on May 8, 2021 17:40:00 GMT -5
Liiisa, if you read as much sci-fi as I did in the 60s and 70s, it may be familiar from another book. That could be! But it looked like something I would have remembered from a biology class. |
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Post by Oweena on May 10, 2021 8:26:09 GMT -5
We were camping for 5 days and it rained a bit so I read.
Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keefe
Really liked this book, Radden Keefe wrote Say Nothing in 2019 and it was in my top books for that year and again he engages you in a story you wouldn't think could be interesting.
If you've heard, seen, or witnessed any of the fallout from the opioid crisis this book tells the full story of the Sackler family who invented Oxycodone and then went on to make billions pushing it on doctors and pharmacists while presenting themselves as wonderful philanthropists.
Recommended.
Alice + Freda Forever: A Murder in Memphis by Alexis Coe
Short book on the relationship, murder, and trial of Alice Mitchell who stabbed her girlfriend in broad daylight in Memphis in 1892. The book goes into the sexism and misogyny of the times as well as how society couldn't understand how Alice ever thought she could have married her girlfriend in the first place, let alone live as a man. The men felt that right there showed her to be insane. It was a case I'd never heard of before and the author uses the court transcripts and the letters between the two women to more fully tell their story.
The Souvenir Museum: by Elizabeth McCracken
Book of short stories by the author of Bowlaway, which I think a few of us read years ago. The stories have a lot of loss and longing in them, for relationships broken up or cut short. There are several stories that have the same characters, and I wished she'd written a whole novel on them as they're quirky and relatable. Maybe she just couldn't coax more out of those characters in order to fill a book.
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Post by snowwhite on May 10, 2021 9:45:02 GMT -5
Hi sprite are you still looking for a home for Double X economy? Anyway, came here to say I've just zoomed (relatively, been a bit busy) through Project Hail Mary the latest by Andy Weir. I think what I like about reading his books is that you can be reasonably sure it all turns out OK in the end (even if not entirely in a way you'd predict), so you can just relax and enjoy the story and problem-solving that happens along the way. So yeah, if you like his other books - hard sci-fi but non-dystopian you'll probably enjoy this one too. |
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Post by sprite on May 10, 2021 13:48:36 GMT -5
If you're interested, I can pop it in the post sometime this week?
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Post by tzarine on May 10, 2021 14:17:45 GMT -5
reread sound & the fury
faulkner is a genius. the stream of consciousness didn't hurt my brain
cultural warriors
nonfic
a journalist infiltrates right wing dating sites, incel groups. fascinating scary worlds
wish it dug a bit deeper. still interesting
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Post by snowwhite on May 10, 2021 16:42:27 GMT -5
If you're interested, I can pop it in the post sometime this week? Yes please. Maybe it'll be a Go Book? |
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Post by Liiisa on May 11, 2021 18:12:06 GMT -5
11) N. K. Jemisin, The City We Became
The first of a trilogy where the premise is that great cities come alive at some point, and they come to life via certain people who live there and become avatars of the city. In this case it's New York, and the lead characters are people who come to embody the various boroughs of the city and have to fight an epic battle. I found it highly amusing because the different boroughs really do have different personalities. Hard to put down - 400+ page novel read in three days.
But the catch with trilogies is that now I have to wait for her to finish writing the next book.
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Post by sprite on May 12, 2021 3:47:24 GMT -5
I'm in book 2 of a trilogy that is on the library as a single book, and I'm having to make the hard call--will I go for broke and read all three in a month? I often find I get sick of an author's style when I do that, but so far it's been an interesting enough story that I haven't noticed.
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