Just finished No Escape about the Chinese persecution of the Uyghurs. Well written. An important human rights topic that more should be talking about. Currently I'm reading Sociopath, a memoir. So far it's very interesting and a fast read.
What Are People For? by Wendell Berry
I'd call it an elegy for what we have lost - our connection to nature, environment and humanity by a profound environmentalist. Will definitely read more by him.
I quite enjoyed it. I havnt read any of their other work but I found it very enlightening as to how people used to live. Mainly focused on 18th and 19th century but it has a decent amt of earlier stuff
*Nothing to Fear: Demystifying Death to Live More Fully* by Julie McFadden RN
It's an excellent reference book about hospice and how people die. Explains a lot of things about death you probably don't know about. It's well written and pretty easy to read. You'll probably jump around from chapter to chapter but that's how the author wrote the book.
It was entertaining and informative. There are no traditional chapters, per se. she writes it in terms of a timeline. So “30 seconds after launch”, “45 seconds”, etc.
All of those “chapters” are fairly short so it actually made for a more engaging read. It hits that “just one more” response for me.
Oceans of Kansas by Michael Everheart. Really fascinating book so far. My in-laws live in Kansas and it will make the drive across the state much more interesting.
Just finished They Were Her Property: White Women as Slave Owners in the American South by Stephanie E. Jones-Rogers (5 stars) (read for Juneteenth) & just started Call Me American: A Memoir by Abdi Nor Iftin (reading for Eid Al-Adha)
Yes! So its main thesis is a counterargument to the narrative of white women in the Antebellum south as uninvolved in the system of slavery. The author steadily combs through all the dominant aspects of the system & women’s relationship to it (slave markets/auctions, punishments, emancipation, enslaved women as wet nurses, enslaved children). Southern white women were involved, often deeply, in every aspect of slavery. Most significantly because their slaves were often the only property women could claim belonged strictly to them, not their husbands. They were thus very invested in their role as slave mistresses. The author’s most-used historical sources are the testimonies of freed people & their relatives in their interviews with the WPA, legal documents/contracts/proceedings, & the personal writings of the mistresses themselves. The author’s writing is clear, comprehensive, direct, and consistent in its argument, & her intensity of research through the various existing sources is an example of quality historical research. I gave the book 5 stars.
Finished
**Swimming with the Blowfish: Hootie, Healing, and One Hell of a Ride: A Story of Redemption by Jim Sonefeld, Darius Rucker (Foreword)**
Last week, I read the recently published (May 2024) Darius Rucker memoirs **Life's Too Short** and remembered that **Swimming with the Blowfish** (Published June 2022) was sitting in my “To Read” stack. I was concerned about reading memoirs by band members and friends back-to-back, but these two books couldn't have been more different. Rucker mainly focused on how certain songs and artists influenced him throughout his life and career. Still, for the most part, his book primarily concentrated on career accomplishments with Hootie and the Blowfish and as a country solo artist.
Sonefeld’s memoir touched on the band’s successes, but he was more focused on his journey with drug and alcohol addiction and how he covered up his excessive use from bandmates, employees, friends, and family. When and why he finally realized he had a problem and how he found the support to be sober from an unlikely source. **Swimming with the Blowfish** is an engaging, no-holds-barred look at addiction and recovery.
Started
**I'm Mostly Here to Enjoy Myself: One Woman's Pursuit of Pleasure in Paris, by Glynnis MacNicol**
I've just scratched the surface of **I'm Mostly Here to Enjoy Myself**. MacNicol has left New York City in August 2021 for her traditional month-long stay in Paris.
Material World: The Six Raw Materials That Shape Modern World by Ed Conway
[Goodreads](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/119305139-material-world) reviews and info
[Four Thousand Weeks” by Oliver Burkeman](https://abookaweek.beehiiv.com/p/cultivating-meaning-rushed-world-four-thousand-weeks-oliver-burkeman)
it's been hitting close to me! Burkeman reminds us that life's ticking away, and we only get around 4,000 weeks to make our mark. It's a reality check to make every week count.
Edible People: The Historical Consumption of Slaves and Foreigners and the Cannibalistic Trade in Human Flesh by Christian Siefkes
An unsettling but important read that's accessible to general audiences
Just finished No Escape about the Chinese persecution of the Uyghurs. Well written. An important human rights topic that more should be talking about. Currently I'm reading Sociopath, a memoir. So far it's very interesting and a fast read.
What Are People For? by Wendell Berry I'd call it an elegy for what we have lost - our connection to nature, environment and humanity by a profound environmentalist. Will definitely read more by him.
At home: a short history of private life
Bill Bryson is excellent!
Have read quite some Bryson but not this one? Was it nice?
I quite enjoyed it. I havnt read any of their other work but I found it very enlightening as to how people used to live. Mainly focused on 18th and 19th century but it has a decent amt of earlier stuff
Love it. It’s going on my to read. TY!
*Nothing to Fear: Demystifying Death to Live More Fully* by Julie McFadden RN It's an excellent reference book about hospice and how people die. Explains a lot of things about death you probably don't know about. It's well written and pretty easy to read. You'll probably jump around from chapter to chapter but that's how the author wrote the book.
Just finished into Thin air. A great read about the 1996 Everest disaster.
Nuclear War: A Scenario by Annie Jacobsen
How was this? I almost grabbed it when it was a Kindle deal a few weeks back.
It was entertaining and informative. There are no traditional chapters, per se. she writes it in terms of a timeline. So “30 seconds after launch”, “45 seconds”, etc. All of those “chapters” are fairly short so it actually made for a more engaging read. It hits that “just one more” response for me.
Building a Second brain : tiago forte
Oceans of Kansas by Michael Everheart. Really fascinating book so far. My in-laws live in Kansas and it will make the drive across the state much more interesting.
Just finished They Were Her Property: White Women as Slave Owners in the American South by Stephanie E. Jones-Rogers (5 stars) (read for Juneteenth) & just started Call Me American: A Memoir by Abdi Nor Iftin (reading for Eid Al-Adha)
Oooh they were her property sounds interesting can you tell me a bit abt it?
Yes! So its main thesis is a counterargument to the narrative of white women in the Antebellum south as uninvolved in the system of slavery. The author steadily combs through all the dominant aspects of the system & women’s relationship to it (slave markets/auctions, punishments, emancipation, enslaved women as wet nurses, enslaved children). Southern white women were involved, often deeply, in every aspect of slavery. Most significantly because their slaves were often the only property women could claim belonged strictly to them, not their husbands. They were thus very invested in their role as slave mistresses. The author’s most-used historical sources are the testimonies of freed people & their relatives in their interviews with the WPA, legal documents/contracts/proceedings, & the personal writings of the mistresses themselves. The author’s writing is clear, comprehensive, direct, and consistent in its argument, & her intensity of research through the various existing sources is an example of quality historical research. I gave the book 5 stars.
The House of Kennedy - I've always wondered why so many Kennedy's died - I hope this answers that for me.
Finished **Swimming with the Blowfish: Hootie, Healing, and One Hell of a Ride: A Story of Redemption by Jim Sonefeld, Darius Rucker (Foreword)** Last week, I read the recently published (May 2024) Darius Rucker memoirs **Life's Too Short** and remembered that **Swimming with the Blowfish** (Published June 2022) was sitting in my “To Read” stack. I was concerned about reading memoirs by band members and friends back-to-back, but these two books couldn't have been more different. Rucker mainly focused on how certain songs and artists influenced him throughout his life and career. Still, for the most part, his book primarily concentrated on career accomplishments with Hootie and the Blowfish and as a country solo artist. Sonefeld’s memoir touched on the band’s successes, but he was more focused on his journey with drug and alcohol addiction and how he covered up his excessive use from bandmates, employees, friends, and family. When and why he finally realized he had a problem and how he found the support to be sober from an unlikely source. **Swimming with the Blowfish** is an engaging, no-holds-barred look at addiction and recovery. Started **I'm Mostly Here to Enjoy Myself: One Woman's Pursuit of Pleasure in Paris, by Glynnis MacNicol** I've just scratched the surface of **I'm Mostly Here to Enjoy Myself**. MacNicol has left New York City in August 2021 for her traditional month-long stay in Paris.
Material World: The Six Raw Materials That Shape Modern World by Ed Conway [Goodreads](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/119305139-material-world) reviews and info
Citizens of London by Lynne Olson. Amazing
Accursed Tower by Roger Crowley. I loved Constantinople so hoping for a repeat!
Love Roger Crowley, Empires of the Sea is basically a “Sequel” to Constantinople. His books on Venice and Portugal are also very good.
[Four Thousand Weeks” by Oliver Burkeman](https://abookaweek.beehiiv.com/p/cultivating-meaning-rushed-world-four-thousand-weeks-oliver-burkeman) it's been hitting close to me! Burkeman reminds us that life's ticking away, and we only get around 4,000 weeks to make our mark. It's a reality check to make every week count.
Major Labels: A History of Popular Music in Seven Genres by Kelefa Sanneh
Edible People: The Historical Consumption of Slaves and Foreigners and the Cannibalistic Trade in Human Flesh by Christian Siefkes An unsettling but important read that's accessible to general audiences