Books - What are you reading?
Discussion
Just picked up Carson McCullers' The Heart is a Lonely Hunter.
An hour in and it looks to be pretty good. Somehow any knowledge of this apparently acclaimed American classic and it's famous author have both managed to completely escape me all of my life so far.
Looking forward to finding more of her work once I've finished this one.
An hour in and it looks to be pretty good. Somehow any knowledge of this apparently acclaimed American classic and it's famous author have both managed to completely escape me all of my life so far.
Looking forward to finding more of her work once I've finished this one.
Prepare to be swept away with this brilliant history of the Eddystone Lighthouses.
Visionary designers aided by gritty determined rough men with gnarly hands, battling against the elements to build something tall and useful.
Soaked, freezing, dashed on the rocks, press ganged, kidnapped by the French, marooned for weeks, it was a laugh a minute being in the offshore gneis working party.
Visionary designers aided by gritty determined rough men with gnarly hands, battling against the elements to build something tall and useful.
Soaked, freezing, dashed on the rocks, press ganged, kidnapped by the French, marooned for weeks, it was a laugh a minute being in the offshore gneis working party.
I read ‘Black Swan’ by Nassim Taleb some years ago - more from professional curiosity than anything as my line of work involves risk at the fat tail end. Obviously this is a far more relèvent book at this moment in time, dealing as we are with our own ‘black swan’; it’s an interesting counter-intuitive yet wholly obvious take on these issues.
It is part of a series of books called ‘Incerto’, each dealing with the issue of ‘uncertainty’, so while I have time on my hands I thought I’d give them all a read. You can get them individually but I wanted a ‘set’, the paperback is out of print but I managed to get a hardback set, and beautiful they are. Expensive, but I’m only buying bread and water at the moment!
It is part of a series of books called ‘Incerto’, each dealing with the issue of ‘uncertainty’, so while I have time on my hands I thought I’d give them all a read. You can get them individually but I wanted a ‘set’, the paperback is out of print but I managed to get a hardback set, and beautiful they are. Expensive, but I’m only buying bread and water at the moment!
andy_s said:
I read ‘Black Swan’ by Nassim Taleb some years ago - more from professional curiosity than anything as my line of work involves risk at the fat tail end. Obviously this is a far more relèvent book at this moment in time, dealing as we are with our own ‘black swan’; it’s an interesting counter-intuitive yet wholly obvious take on these issues.
It is part of a series of books called ‘Incerto’, each dealing with the issue of ‘uncertainty’, so while I have time on my hands I thought I’d give them all a read. You can get them individually but I wanted a ‘set’, the paperback is out of print but I managed to get a hardback set, and beautiful they are. Expensive, but I’m only buying bread and water at the moment!
I too am involved in fat-tails in financial markets. I have made huge sums investing in out-strike option strategies over the years (and lost some smaller sums too). It is part of a series of books called ‘Incerto’, each dealing with the issue of ‘uncertainty’, so while I have time on my hands I thought I’d give them all a read. You can get them individually but I wanted a ‘set’, the paperback is out of print but I managed to get a hardback set, and beautiful they are. Expensive, but I’m only buying bread and water at the moment!
I was an early fan of Taleb. I was absolutely blown away by "Fooled by Randomness" when it first came out, as it captured so many themes I'd been observing and employing in markets. "Black Swan" was also good. However, he has become a bit more pleased with himself. He has become more obscure, more philosophical and, well, just up himself. I might have to re-engage as he clearly has a great brain and produces some left-field thinking.
"Into every life a little rain must fall". they say. I managed - just - to keep my head above water with this one:-
"The Flavia de Luce novels are a cult favourite" says the Mail on Sunday, emblazoned on the dust cover. Well, the newspaper is renowned for a Colonel Blimpish type of reader, but here I can only surmise that it is for the elder end of the spectrum of their readers, those who are well past their second childhood and drifting serenely into dementia. Th book is about a 12 yr-old girl sent to a boarding school in Canada. it astounds me that at this age she knows the history of mass-murderers, knows all about arsenic and arsine gas, and is able, while police cannot, untangle the mystery of a body that falls down the chimney in her room with a separated head that does not belong to the body.
Enough! We are informed that the seven books in the series are printed in 30 languages, unfortunately English being one of them, and have won many awards. But not from me, I'm afraid.
"The Flavia de Luce novels are a cult favourite" says the Mail on Sunday, emblazoned on the dust cover. Well, the newspaper is renowned for a Colonel Blimpish type of reader, but here I can only surmise that it is for the elder end of the spectrum of their readers, those who are well past their second childhood and drifting serenely into dementia. Th book is about a 12 yr-old girl sent to a boarding school in Canada. it astounds me that at this age she knows the history of mass-murderers, knows all about arsenic and arsine gas, and is able, while police cannot, untangle the mystery of a body that falls down the chimney in her room with a separated head that does not belong to the body.
Enough! We are informed that the seven books in the series are printed in 30 languages, unfortunately English being one of them, and have won many awards. But not from me, I'm afraid.
AstonZagato said:
andy_s said:
I read ‘Black Swan’ by Nassim Taleb some years ago - more from professional curiosity than anything as my line of work involves risk at the fat tail end. Obviously this is a far more relèvent book at this moment in time, dealing as we are with our own ‘black swan’; it’s an interesting counter-intuitive yet wholly obvious take on these issues.
It is part of a series of books called ‘Incerto’, each dealing with the issue of ‘uncertainty’, so while I have time on my hands I thought I’d give them all a read. You can get them individually but I wanted a ‘set’, the paperback is out of print but I managed to get a hardback set, and beautiful they are. Expensive, but I’m only buying bread and water at the moment!
I too am involved in fat-tails in financial markets. I have made huge sums investing in out-strike option strategies over the years (and lost some smaller sums too). It is part of a series of books called ‘Incerto’, each dealing with the issue of ‘uncertainty’, so while I have time on my hands I thought I’d give them all a read. You can get them individually but I wanted a ‘set’, the paperback is out of print but I managed to get a hardback set, and beautiful they are. Expensive, but I’m only buying bread and water at the moment!
I was an early fan of Taleb. I was absolutely blown away by "Fooled by Randomness" when it first came out, as it captured so many themes I'd been observing and employing in markets. "Black Swan" was also good. However, he has become a bit more pleased with himself. He has become more obscure, more philosophical and, well, just up himself. I might have to re-engage as he clearly has a great brain and produces some left-field thinking.
Sailing Alone Around the World by Joshua Slocum, published in 1900. This book is the account of the first solo round the world trip in a sailboat. It was written by the man who did it. Nothing that crazy happens. He's occasionally in serious danger but writes about it in such a calm way that you can't help but like him. He writes about the mundane better than almost anyone. He details sail mending, cooking and boat carpentry in an eloquent way. 5/5 stars.
denn69 said:
Sailing Alone Around the World by Joshua Slocum, published in 1900. This book is the account of the first solo round the world trip in a sailboat. It was written by the man who did it. Nothing that crazy happens. He's occasionally in serious danger but writes about it in such a calm way that you can't help but like him. He writes about the mundane better than almost anyone. He details sail mending, cooking and boat carpentry in an eloquent way. 5/5 stars.
If you enjoyed that then A World of my Own by Robin Knox-Johnston is well worth a read as is the contemporary (to RK-J that is as they were in the same race, the first non-stop single handed round the world yacht race) The Long Way by Bernard MoitessierI've just finished "Reckoning" by Kerry Wilkinson, first of a trilogy set in Britain after oil has run out, a war has been fought and the country is run directly by a King. On reaching the age of 16, all citizens are categorised to decide how they will be most use to their country, and shifted around to suit. The story follows a small group who are sent to the royal palace as "Offerings", and how that turns out not to be the honour it is first thought to be.
It's a good enough story, but not really my kind of thing so I doubt I'll go out of my way to find the other two in the series.
It's a good enough story, but not really my kind of thing so I doubt I'll go out of my way to find the other two in the series.
MB140 said:
If you like those sort of books (I do) then Ed Macey: Apache is a cracking read. It’s about all his tour in Afghan. But a portion is about the reduce of a British solider where they strapped 4 guys to the outside (yes outside) of an Apache. Flew them right in the stronghold of the taliban and rescued the soldier left behind.
Seconded. I've read Apache a few times lowdrag said:
An interesting question posed there. Is a man from Pakistan is a Pakistani, wouldn't someone from Afghanistan be an Afghanistani? Or would that make me an Englishi? Language is a wonderful thing.
Most peoples are "our people" speaking "our language" in "our land" in their own language. What they get called by other peoples in their language doesn't always match up very well.Gassing Station | Books and Literature | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff