Book Reviews

When I was in my mid-teens, I was introduced to novels that were worthwhile reading, and I have not looked back since then. This page is dedicated to that passion.

I will eventually install a feedback button for anyone who wishes to comment on my reviews because at the end of the day, critical peer support and feedback will only make my reviews better.

I look forward to the challenges and opportunities this may bring, and a chance for me to stagger along while crafting and refining my literary memories.

A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole

Atomic Habits by James Clear

There are a lot of ephemeral occurrences in our lives, they flit into and out of our days, months and years. Some of them are concepts and others are people, and for a book reader like me there are books. Atomic Habits by James Clear has been one of these books which has constantly popped up into my life through other people’s experiences and recommendations.

Atomic Habits is what i refer to as a full spectrum book. I have had recommendations to read this book by a full spectrum of people from the one extreme of people i could not stand and i have no respect for, through to individuals i truly value and who’s opinion i judge to be important and noteworthy. The great thing about this book was that they were all correct, from the two extremes and everyone in between.

This is one of those rare books which i started just to see if there was any value in it, quickly evolved into only reading this book. I did not take long to finish, as i read a chapter in the morning before work and at the end of the day before bedtime. The writing was simple and efficient, which made easy work of a subject that could quite easily be considered boring and dull.

James Clear writes in a manner that is very personal and easily relatable by any person who wants to see themselves reducing bad habits and improving upon the good habits. The greatest part of the book that i found was his willingness to break down the differences of the two habits and his understanding that either of these can quickly swap places when not consciously managed. That of course is the point, consciousness and awareness of what you are doing and why.

What was revelatory for me from this book was the idea of building from a small position. I am not a fan of exercise and i have never enjoyed it or have been a particularly sporty person. More importantly, most of my working life has been very physical so i didn’t need to exercise. But in James Clear’s book he strongly delineates people like me who try to exercise for half an hour each day and completely fail, from the person who starts with a 5-minute exercise routine and then builds this atomic habit into a regular, lengthy exercise routine.

I was lucky to have picked this book up after having decided to reduce my alcohol consumption. I made my old habit difficult – i did not buy any more beer or wine and the whiskey (which i rarely drink) is now in a cupboard that normally has clothes waiting for me to iron hanging from the front of it. I have now reduced my old habits and introduced the new one – as soon as i get home i put of my joggers and take the dog for a walk to the park. Alcohol out and fitness in, i have also swapped the evening dessert which a habit i learned from my wife and now have a banana instead.

Unknowingly i had done a similar thing when i gave up smoking. Every time i sat down to read a book i would want a cigarette so i swapped it out with green tea which i had never tried before. My new habit is now to have a cup of green tea whenever i am reading a book for pleasure. There was a lot of material in this book that is beneficial for anyone and not all examples have to be followed but the principle can be applied to anything. Three years ago, i did not have a share portfolio but i built it up with small acquisitions over three years to the point where it is now the equivalent of my net income – which was the target. I shall now start doing the same thing with my savings account, create a deposit structure of small amounts, a good habit, while not spending any of it, the bad habit.

Atomic Habits and The Psychology of Money walk hand in hand and need to be on your reading list. Atomic Habits for me is no longer just a good book that came highly recommended but is now part of who i am and who i aim to be moving forward.

Strategy: A History

Many years ago, i first came into contact with Lawrence Freedman as a history undergraduate and like so many other scholars he left an impression that was long lasting and memorable. So, when i was looking for a long-read audio book to replace Dung Xiao Ping, i was lucky enough to discover Strategy: A History. I love to whine about how the perception of strategy the term and the concept have been diluted and twisted to ensure that the core has been torn from the original true meaning. This book though gave me an opportunity to listen to the perspective of one of the great modern-day historians and their research into the subject matter.

Lawrence Freedman certainly does not disappoint with his depth of knowledge and comprehension on the subject matter. He starts at a time in biblical history and works his way up through the timeline through to the present day. There is qualitative depth to his work that goes beyond having an interest in writing a book and shows in every paragraph that he writes. He ties modern concepts with previous attempts of explain and executing strategy and those individuals who wrote about strategy and who were and are considered master strategists. He moves from war to business and politics with the ease of a master if his field.

The depth Freedman’s knowledge on the history of strategy is constantly on display through a wide variety of case studies, examples and in-depth explanations that make the subject matter digestible in smaller chunks for the average reader and or listener. There was so much that i did not know and there was a lot that i thought i new and understood but was surprised at the roots and consequences of the context in some examples.

The biggest surprise for me was how heavily influenced by individuals and current cultural trends is part of the reason why strategy is constantly distorted. I am quite happy to openly groan concerning the term strategic plan because it just grinds my gears in the most tangible way possible. This too is covered by the reality that it is a trend just as much as selfies and emojis are other forms of trends in popular culture. This is the underlying problem with strategy; it can be twisted to suit whatever the individual or the institution wish it would be twisted into. The beast is created and distorted to meet the creator’s own image.

I am still a supporter of good strategy and i definitely am old fashioned in my views of strategy and how it should be used. Why wouldn’t i be? I am now and have been for the last ten years reaping the rewards of using strategy, strategic objectives and planning to meet those goals. This book was interesting and engaging every time i listened to it. I also developed more confidence that my biased opinion of what is and is not good strategy is working for me and how i am conducting myself in its execution.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is a student of history or who wants to understand strategy from its truest form and its most noble characteristics. I loved listening to this book and i have no doubt that if i had read it instead then there would be scores of notes taken down and later used. Find this book and consume it, because it is nutritious and healthy for your mind and future prospects.

The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin

There is always something special about reading a book written by Ursula K. Le Guin. There is a generous style in her prose that allows the reader to not just enter the world that she is creating but also transports you into concepts with context. I continue to read her work with as great an interest as i did with her first book. I cannot say joy is my driver in reading her work, but it is the cerebral pleasure of reading great science fiction that keeps me enthralled and attentive to her every word.

As Le Guin takes you into the two worlds in which Shevek inhabits she also does her best and creates a story that not only addresses the trials and tribulations of the individuals in their social lives but also the bigger picture of sociopolitical structures. The Dispossessed was written during the height of the cold war and it directly reflects the struggles between Communism and Capitalism. Anarres is the home world where Shevek was born and raised within a communist utopia but chooses exile on Urras the capitalist home world of his people. Anarres is the moon of Urras and the inhabitants have lived there for over one hundred and seventy years as exiles from Urras.
It is easy to see how the social and political environment of the day had such a large influence on Le Guin’s work and how she was able to apply this into a sci-fi wonder without degrading the sci-fi, and the skill of an observant anthropologist is pulled to the foreground.

Into this mix is added toward the end of the book the Hainish and Terrans. The Hainish are the original great galactic explorers who are an ancient sentient species with advanced technology and social awareness. The Terrans represent the humans of Earth, and it was during a conversation between Shevek and the Terran Ambassador to Urras that Le Guin demonstrates the prescient nature of her forethought by describing the future of Earth. The ambassador describes in detail how Earth was so badly managed by constant generations of people that by the time the population had reached nine billion, the planet had become so hot and polluted that it nearly became unlivable through war over resources and the destruction of major cities and populations to the point that they nearly drove themselves extinct. Even after fifteen hundred years as the ambassador spoke the planet and population had not truly recovered from the stresses placed upon it.

It is also in this book where she reveals the origins of the ansible which is a faster than light communication device. Delving into the realms of authoritarianism, isolationism and xenophobia through the wide range of characters who intermittently drop in and out of Shevek’s life. Opens up the spectrum of individuals working and living within worlds where they are just as small and ephemeral as we are in reality. There are no larger-than-life characters and the ones that have been raised to that point are justifiably mythical in their own way.
I don’t find Le Guin’s books to be fast paced but i do find them fascinating and i look forward to completing them all later because i am too busy to do it sooner.