james walker

There's more to life than books, but not much more...

Reviewed: 20-08-24

There are 132 million books published in modern history and so you need to be careful about your choices. This autopsy of why, how, and when we read is a welcome addition to any shelf, though be careful to avoid 'bable' (book accumulation beyond life expectancy) or as the author's mother puts it more bluntly, 'you won't read them all.' To attempt to squeeze more stories into my alloted time, I listened to this memoir of a working class reader while doing house chores, so I understand and embrace the author's love for stories. Hodkinson would go on to create his own publishing house, Pomona, and shares his frustrations of getting work he values into the public domain as well as his own struggles to get published. Fortunately, he was successful, and I look forward to reading his latest, 'Opening the Gates of Hell,' which was published this month

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Leviathan 2.0

Reviewed: 06-10-23

The supposed removal of individuality by AI is not a new phenomenon. Our loss of autonomy began in the 17th century when nation states set agendas for us. In the 18th and 19th centuries, modern corporations took on the role and identity of the state (think of Amazon disputing cases and determing justice, etc). These, according to the political philosopher David Runciman, were the original thinking machines. Drawing on Thomas Hobbes's 'Leviathan,' he argues these social entities have developed their own logic and, to some extent, consciousness. AI is just the latest iteration of these thinking machines.

Does this mean that we will give up all responsibility to AI to make decisions for us in the future (algorithms deciding which patients are worthy of operations when there's limited resources) and if so, what does this mean when AI has no human awareness of consequence of action? Guess we'll find out soon...

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Poetic crawl across America.

Reviewed: 06-09-23

Read all of Kerouac in my late teens, so was intrigued to revisit this classic three decades later. Truman Capote was right; That's not writing, that's typing. But it does have a poetic flow to it that places you right at the wheel with Dean Moriaty, guzzling up the highway in anticipation of the next city.

Matt Dillon is perfect as the narrator with his couldn't care less drawl although some editing is required.

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Ape-ocalypse

Reviewed: 03-07-23

This was such an iconic film growing up, so I was curious to see what the novel, originally called 'Monkey Planet', was like. It's intelligent, thoughtful, and empathetic with some astute observations about human nature and evolution. I was absolutely transfixed throughout and would definitely read more by Pierre Boulle. The book was written before the film, and so is an original piece of science fiction.

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Dark and delightful stories.

Reviewed: 19-06-23

Moore captures the 'good natured insincerity' of everyday life in these carefully observed and superbly crafted stories. Her sarcastic, acerbic, and deftly delivered put downs had me in stitches, though her humour may be too close to the bone for some readers. Definitely a match for Alice Munro.

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Keep On Keeping On

Reviewed: 14-06-23

A witty, thoughtful, and helpful guide to get you through those difficult moments. Taking his near death experience of Covid, Rosen - or raison as he prefers to be known - weaves together incidences of personal loss to help the reader through their own troubles. And yes, there's lots of silliness and word games thrown in, as you'd expect from this national treasure.

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Messy Lives

Reviewed: 03-06-23

Ronson is a master of investigative journalism because he never loses focus on the fact that stories are about people and people are complex and contradictory, and sometimes it is difficult to know what to believe. Good journalism leaves you with questions rather than answers.

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Cats, cars, and genocide.

Reviewed: 03-06-23

The power of a diary is you witness the gradual transformation of society under Nazism. The everyday trivial concerns - car braking down, feeding the cats, DIY - gives way to the more sinister as every basic human right is eroded. I listened to this for two reasons: One, the late satirist Lord Biro carried a copy of the diaries around with him, and I wanted to know why. Two, with everything going on in the world today, I wanted to switch off the radio and see if history is repeating itself. It feels as if it is in terms of authoritarian regimes, their application of gospel narratives to leaders, and collectivism - which invariably creates them v us. I feel I know so much more about this period of history now as you can only really empathise when put in someone else's shoes; More so as I am English, and this gives a German perspective. I did find the performance a bit robotic, but the witness literature is so powerful it quickly faded.

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The power of language

Reviewed: 18-05-23

This is a fictionalised insight into an important moment in history when the Oxford dictionary was formed. What resonates throughout is the power of language to define how we understand and perceive the world around us and who has the power to determine the use and knowledge of such words. Made me think of the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis - the idea that language informs our sense of culture and reality.

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1 person found this helpful

Delayed Gratification

Reviewed: 20-01-23

Who would have thought that the plough would lead to a division of labour along gender lines and that agriculture, as a form of delayed gratification, would help develop a future- orientated mindset? These are just some of the ideas put forward in this compelling but controversial analysis of human evolution.

The observations are grounded with empirical evidence but will still divide some readers, particularly those that could be described as geographical determinism and balanced diversity.

Although the narrator is fine, this feels very much like a book to be read rather than listened to. It requires pause for reflection.

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1 person found this helpful