Review: The Great Successor: The Divinely Perfect Destiny of Brilliant Comrade Kim Jong Un

The Great Successor: The Divinely Perfect Destiny of Brilliant Comrade Kim Jong Un by Anna Fifield
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was 100% fascinating. Given the rare glimpses and the misinformation involved with North Korea, it is all sorts of interesting to have someone give a coherent (or as coherent as can be expected) account of Kim Jong-un's life.

Having attended school in Switzerland a few years prior to Kim Jong-un, I had heard various rumors about him and his siblings there, so it was good to read something that made a bit more sense.

Some of the information was truly surprising, such as the use of meth in North Korea. Some of those user rates seemed extremely high, so I wonder if they can be verified in any way.

The chapter on the talks with Trump was excellent: "After all, the leaders of the two countries had only seven years of political experience between them. Six of them were on Kim Jong Un's side." And then they struck a deal. The country that has reneged on ALL of its nuclear deals promised a vaguely worded agreement of working toward the denuclearization of the peninsula (which, weirdly, would include South Korea). In exchange the U.S. ordered the suspension of US military exercises with South Korea (which was a surprise to South Korea and Japan).

When Kim Yo-Jong (Kim Jong-un's sister) went to South Korea for the olympics, she stayed in the hotel suite, but she brought her own cot to sleep in, and didn't leave one fingerprint or strand of DNA. When Kim Jong-un attended the summit in Singapore, his agents occupied his suite for two days after he left in order to get rid of every single trace of DNA he may have left. As much as the west likes to make fun of them, these guys really seem to know what they're doing now.

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Review: Your Duck Is My Duck: Stories

Your Duck Is My Duck: Stories by Deborah Eisenberg
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I felt at times that this book was written for people with a higher IQ than mine. Which isn't to say I didn't enjoy it. Each one of the stories had something to contribute, and while I understood and enjoyed some, some left me completely perplexed. I barely caught a few subtle allusions here and there, which makes me think I probably missed a couple more.

And if anyone understood the story "Merge" please let me know. That one left me very confused, but very curious.

Probably 4.5 stars

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Review: Poesie

Poesie by Catullus
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Why is it that every time I read something in Latin I revert back to being a middle schooler? Well, aside from the fact that I was a middle schooler when I studied Latin. I find myself finding all the curse words and "fun" expressions and seeing how they were used in Latin. And Catullus provided plenty of material for that.

Regardless, I enjoyed this, although more the translation than anything. I probably enjoyed some of his shorter love poems to lesbia (which were apparently dedicated to Sappho) more than the longer epics he seems to be known for.

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Review: The Bridegroom Was a Dog

The Bridegroom Was a Dog by Yōko Tawada
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND ANYTHING AND IT WAS SO WEIRD BUT I THINK I ENJOYED IT BUT I'M NOT SURE.

The first one "The Bridegroom was a dog" made no sense to me. The second story "Missing heels" just seemed like one long dream, while the last one, "The Gotthard Railway", was my favorite since it talked about places I know and love.

Just like with "Memoirs of a Polar Bear", I'd give these somewhere between 1 and 5 stars. Rounding up to 4 stars this time because she mentioned Ticino and the Gotthard tunnel.

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Review: Death Sentences

Death Sentences by Suzanne Myre
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

These were very hit or miss. Pretty much all of them discussing either death, pets, or some combination thereof.

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Review: Benjamin Harrison

Benjamin Harrison by Charles W. Calhoun
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A president who is known only for being sandwiched in between the terms of another unknown president, despite being the grandson of a third (semi-)unknown president.

Despite this, however, he was a pretty capable individual, although certainly not singular. The author seemed to gloss over Harrison's whole Hawaii annexation (which basically turned the U.S. into a colonial empire), and I would've enjoyed more gossip about his marriage to his niece, which the author seemed keen to avoid.

I find it very curious to read about how the Republican party during this time is Northern, pro-civil rights (and anti-slavery) and pro-big government. In many respects the complete opposite of what it is today. It will be interesting to see how this all becomes inversed over the next century.


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Review: The Quiet Boy

The Quiet Boy by Nick Antosca
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Excellent short story. Reminded me of Shirley Jackson in a way. Possibly because I don't read many other short thrillers.

4.5 stars

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Review: The Girl from Venice

The Girl from Venice by Martin Cruz Smith
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a light and quick-paced novel taking place in Italy at the end of WWII. All things that rank favorably for me. Unlike other reviewers, I didn't find the talk about fishing and boating at all boring. I found it pretty fascinating in its own way, and it was pretty much the sum of character development.

Which brings me to the issue I had with this. The characters just seemed odd for some reason. I felt like I had stumbled in halfway through the book or something. They kept saying and doing things that seemed odd, with no real explanation. This included Cenzo, the protagonist, when dealing with them. Why does he feel he can say this and that to one person and not another? Why does he go to this person's house and not the other's? It all just seems to be quite random. Maybe I need my hand held more or something, but there you go.

Anyway, 3 stars in all, since I enjoyed Cenzo, his fishing, and his friends back home.

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Review: The Square

The Square by In-hun Choi
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Apparently this is considered a classic in Korean literature, and I am sure I don't appreciate it fully for the time and place in which it was written (I know that it was written shortly after books like it were even allowed to be printed). There is probably also quite a bit of symbolism that is over my head.

It covers a man moving from South Korea to North Korea and back South (and then to a "Neutral country"), starting before the war and ending after it, although there is pretty much nothing about the war itself.

The juxtaposition between the two countries was probably one of the first that was ever made in literature.

I did, however, find the protagonist pretty annoying at times. I guess it was due to principle, but he seemed rather spoiled, naive and too idealistic at times. I'm not sure if this was on purpose or not.

The ending was really beautiful in its own way.

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Review: The Letters of Abélard and Héloïse

The Letters of Abélard and Héloïse by Pierre Abélard
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Someone needs to make a movie based on these two. 2 extremely intelligent people falling in love. Taking place in the middle ages in Paris and Northern France. They must hide, escape, have a son while on the run, and then finally return and get married. And that's when the trouble starts, and the husband gets castrated and persecuted and the couple is separated forever, relying on these letters to communicate from thenceforth.

Having said that, Abelard does come across as pretty annoying and condescending in these. I don't doubt his intelligence, but neither does he. I did enjoy the arguments as to why women are stronger than men in the Bible (starting around p. 118).

I wish more were written about the final group of letters. If they really were written by Abelard and Heloise it would really add quite a bit, since the tone and subject matter is so different from the other correspondence.

I also wish I knew what happened to Astrolabe.

4.5 stars

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Review: Where The Story Starts

Where The Story Starts by Imogen Clark
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Ok, I'm going to try to comment on this without spoilers, but no promises...

The two main men in this story (the father and son) were extremely childish and spoiled. Even for spoiled rich men they seemed exceedingly so. And their childishness was only surpassed by how frustratingly servile the women were (both the mother and daughter, but especially the mother), protecting and indulging these men at every turn. So in the end the main man never had his comeuppance (when he is found out, the person doesn't reveal it to him or to anyone else, and when he causes a woman's death, he never finds out and lives in ignorant bliss) and never realized how his decisions had real consequences.

All that aside, I rather enjoyed this.

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Review: The Volta Santo of Lucca

The Volta Santo of Lucca by Pietro Lazzarini
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A pretty full informational booklet about il Volto Santo, from the legend, to the actual history, to what we really know about its history (and how). It also details famous and holy people who have had to do with the Volto Santo, and general description of how focal it has been to Lucca as a city.

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Review: Light in the Dark Ages: The Friendship of Francis and Clare of Assisi

Light in the Dark Ages: The Friendship of Francis and Clare of Assisi by Jon M. Sweeney
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Not really about the friendship between Francis and Clare of Assisi, since they hardly ever interacted, other than at the very beginning and for a famous meal together.

However, this was still very interesting. Particularly about how badly (and quickly) Francis's teachings were subverted and altered after his death. In fact, even though he left precise instructions, and said that these directions were not to be changed, they still were completely.

Also interesting how his followers (the spirituals) included Ubertino of Casale, of "Name of the Rose" fame.

I get the impression that he probably came closest to taking the life of Christ (and therefore the Bible) literally, getting rid of all his possessions.

I was also impressed by Clare of Assisi, who probably deserves much more acclaim, being the first female to develop her own "rules" in Catholicism.

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Review: Will It Fly?: How to Test Your Next Business Idea So You Don't Waste Your Time and Money

Will It Fly?: How to Test Your Next Business Idea So You Don't Waste Your Time and Money by Pat Flynn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

All in all I got some great notes. If you already have a business or product/service, you can pretty much skip the first chapters (although they're useful to review from time to time in life). Some great points later on. I especially plan on using the methodologies for searching forums for issues people may have, as well as the entire pre-order section. Will be interesting to see how it turns out.

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Review: The 1-Page Marketing Plan: Get New Customers, Make More Money, And Stand out From The Crowd

The 1-Page Marketing Plan: Get New Customers, Make More Money, And Stand out From The Crowd by Allan Dib
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Some of my notes from this book (since they don't fit in the private notes, once again. Come on Goodreads!):
4 stars for now. We'll see how it pans out once I apply all this. But I appreciate that everything seems actionable with little or no fluff.


*****
a good plumber isn’t necessarily the best person to run a plumbing business

Apply 80/20 to the 80/20 rule: 64/4 rule, or 96% of the stuff you do is a waste of time.

BEFORE: (prospects):

You want to work with them, they value your work, they are profitable

Target market:
What keeps them up at night? What are they afraid about? Angry about? angry at? what do they read/watch? What is their day like? What ONE thing do they want above all?
Create avatar.

Craft message:
Why do they want to become translators?
Don’t confuse them. (not too many options).
What objections do they have?
Take away pain points.


Reach market
Don’t get your name out there. Get prospect names in here.
One is the most dangerous number in business (do you just have one client? one supplier? one source of leads? offer one product?


DURING (Leads):

Capturing
Don’t be a hunter, be a farmer (long term relationships)

Nurturing:
Continuously nurture (more like 12 contacts before they become a client)
Market them until they buy or die.
Don’t be a pest, be a welcome guest.

Sales Conversion
How do I minimize risk? (guarantee returns? Testimonials!!)


AFTER (customers)

World class experience
Build a tribe
Sell them what they want, but give them what they need
Tell the audience about the effort going into this. (all the skills, the checks and balances, the backstory, etc.)

Increase customer lifetime value
Upsell: Sell the expensive thing, upsell cheaper things.
Try a voucher? (for every x spent you get something). Tipo if you get consulting you get the course for free or something.

Stimulating referrals
Just ask (was a pleasure working with you. If you know anyone in a similar situation, they can get a voucher for 10% off their consultation, and you receive 10% your next one).
orchestrate referral
Who has your clients before you?




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Review: Il ladro di ragazze

Il ladro di ragazze by Carlo Silini
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

All in all a good historical novel, with interesting twists and turns, taking place in the 1600's between Mendrisio and Northern Italy.

It did drag on at certain points, however, and could probably have been around 100 pages shorter (there were some tangents and meanderings that didn't seem to add anything to the story).

3 stars, but since it's so difficult to find historical novels taking place in Ticino, I'm bringing it back up to 4 stars.

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Review: Grover Cleveland

Grover Cleveland by Henry F. Graff
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A good, concise book about a rather uninspiring president. The first democrat in the white house since Buchanan, prior to the civil war. Probably best known for serving two non-consecutive terms.

Some interesting tidbits:
One of his daughters, Ruth, died young, but Baby Ruth candy was named after her.
Built a house in a park North of the White House, now it's Cleveland Park.
The city, Cleveland, was named after his ancestor.
The whole story of the tumor in his mouth and having it removed in secret on a boat seemed fascinating.
He was against taking possession of Hawaii.



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Review: Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant

Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant by W. Chan Kim
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Definitely some good pointers from this book. I have copious notes that I'm going to have to sort out now.

EDIT: Reread this around 2 years later to apply it to my business. Let's see how it turns out. I can't help thinking it all seemed very anecdotal though. How many companies applied these same concepts but didn't achieve success? Anyway, we'll see how it goes...

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Review: La briscola in cinque

La briscola in cinque by Marco Malvaldi
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Nice, short, fun book, with enough twists and turns to keep it interesting, although the main point was the Tuscan conversation, especially with the old guys in the bar. Recommended for all those who miss Tuscany. I will be checking out the others in this series.

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Review: Cross and the Floating Dragon: The Gospel in Ryukyu

Cross and the Floating Dragon: The Gospel in Ryukyu by Edward E. Bollinger
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book is basically the history of Christianity in Okinawa. I thought it would be the most boring book I had ever read, but it turned out to be a gem, giving me a look into the history of something that touched the lives of millions of people in the island all told. It covers all types of Christianity (Catholicism, COE, Episcopalianism, Methodism, Presbyterianism, Baptists, seventh day Adventists, and others) on the island.

The whole section on Bettelheim was extremely entertaining (and it turns out he has a Wikipedia page too), especially the tactics the locals used to discourage him, and how he kept persevering.

The "Village that lives by the Bible" story was also extremely interesting, including the truth behind it.

After the war, there was a general mentality that "America won the war, so now we must become Christians" (p. 189), which undoubtedly helped the Christian movement (although it had been going very strong before the war as well).

It was also interesting to read about the conflict between ancestral rites and Christianity, and how Catholicism was the most accommodating for this practice.

All in all an interesting and unique look into a subject I otherwise would never have read about.

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Review: The Unexpected President: The Life and Times of Chester A. Arthur

The Unexpected President: The Life and Times of Chester A. Arthur by Scott S. Greenberger
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

All in all a very good book about a not very good person (turned better later on).

Having been brought up by an ardent abolitionist, and then having left the fold for the more profit-seeking clique of stalwarts and politicians who took "voluntary" payments from employees and bestowed offices as favors, he found himself pretty much by accident as a vice president. And then Garfield was shot by a lunatic, and he found himself president. But at that point he changed, left his crony friends behind and enacted reform to make political positions more merit-based, etc.

Aside from that turn-about, there isn't much that is fascinating about this man's life. In fact, the book talks at great length about other big names of the era, namely Roscoe Conkling, President Grant and President Garfield. It takes 2/3 of the book for Arthur to even become president.

I found the most intriguing bit to be the part about Julia Sand. I think every president could use someone like her.

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Review: South Korea's Minjung Movement: The Culture and Politics of Dissidence

South Korea's Minjung Movement: The Culture and Politics of Dissidence by Kenneth M. Wells
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A collection of essays by various authors regarding Minjung. Overall a bit too academic for me, but definitely interesting and informative.

My favorite chapters:
Confucian Tradition and Nationalist Ideology in Korea, by Chung Chai-sik
Minjung Movements and the Minjung: Organizers and Farmers in a 1980s Farmers' Movement, by Nancy Abelmann
The Iconic Power of Modernity: Reading a Cheju Shaman's Life History and Initiation Dream, by Kim Seong Nae
Contemporary Korean Literature: From Victimization to Minjung Nationalism, by Choi Hyun-moo

There is also a speech by Paik Nak-chung

Interesting to read how the Confucianists were against Democracy, since they said it was incompatible with Confucianism.
Also very interesting to read about Nonghwal

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Review: The Conception of Terror: Tales Inspired by M. R. James - Volume 1

The Conception of Terror: Tales Inspired by M. R. James - Volume 1 by M.R. James
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I'm sorry. Apparently these were re-tellings of classic ghost stories (that I haven't read), but I found each one worse than the other. I actually found the dramatization ok (unlike many other reviewers), but the stories themselves seemed weak, had plot holes (even taking into account that they're fantasy stories, so you can pretty much make up the rules) and didn't really seem to end coherently.

I can't say much more without spoilers, but I guess I'm not a fan of M.R. James.

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Review: Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't by James C. Collins
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

By and large some good information that I plan on using. However, Collins sort of digs his own grave here by not only highlighting great companies, but discounting leaders who can't sustain greatness after they're gone (non-level 5 leaders). The issue here is that plenty of the companies he calls great have since done pretty poorly (Circuit city, Fannie mae), but he can't just say "Well they were great once but now not so much" since that goes against his Level 5 leadership attribute of continuing greatness after they are gone.

Regardless, I took some notes for takeaways I plan on applying:
- Be driven to do what's best for the company
- Hedgehog concept:
Find intersection of what I can be best in the world at, what I like, and what earns money
- Culture of discipline
- Use Technology to accelerate growth (but don't just use technology because everyone else is)
- The Flywheel: Basically compound interest in terms of added effect of small initiatives
- BHAG: Probably better motivation than small "realistic" goals


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Review: The Art and Aesthetics of Form Selections from the History of Chinese Painting

The Art and Aesthetics of Form Selections from the History of Chinese Painting by Yun-ru Ch'en
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I always hesitate to read museum books, since they often tend to be essentially a collection of photos of exhibits, with basically a short description taken from the one in the exhibit itself and that's it.

However, I found this short book to be excellent as a primer into China's history of art. The examples all illustrated clearly the general narrative, which was basically about the progression of art history throughout the dynasties.

4.5 stars for now. Might change it to 5.

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Review: In the Miso Soup

In the Miso Soup by Ryū Murakami
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Well that was messed up.

3.5 stars

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Review: Familiar Things

Familiar Things by Hwang Sok-yong
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Funny, as I was reading this book it reminded me of another book I had read recently, but I couldn't quite remember which one. Anyway, it turns out it was "At Dusk", by the same author.

I'm not sure why it reminded me that book, since they aren't really similar.

Regardless, I enjoyed this book. It was a tad depressing, but there was so much more happening, with the odd characters (with cool nicknames), the odd living situations, the fairy people, the commentary on material waste, etc.


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Review: Midnight Son

Midnight Son by James Dommek Jr.
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Basically an extended podcast, but pretty interesting. A lot of information about the Inupiaq and their beliefs and way of life, as well as of life in the small villages of Alaska.

Having said that, the story seemed like it could have been stronger. He didn't even speak to Teddy directly, and I'm not sure what the final outing he took accomplished.

Also it is odd that Teddy believes he should be judged by peers from his village, since it was peers from his village that he shot at, so I'm not sure how much better that would be.

Anyway, definitely worth the free price, and worth the time just for the information re: Alaska, Inupiaqs, and obviously Inukuns.

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Review: Goguryeo: In Search of Its Culture and History

Goguryeo: In Search of Its Culture and History by Ho-T'Ae Chon
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this, although it gave me the impression of a collection of writings next to museum exhibits (it isn't). The best part was probably the paintings, and it is beyond me how they could decipher some of them, seeing how faded they are. Also, it is a pity that so many of the sites are in North Korea, since we probably could have much more details about this kingdom otherwise.

I found it odd that they left a history of the kingdom to the end, rather than start with it at the beginning.

Also odd that there wasn't a section on their language. This was one of the points I'm was most curious about. Was it closer to Korean or Manchurian? A mixture? Neither of the two? I don't know. It isn't even mentioned.



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Review: Kristin Lavransdatter

Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Wow what a journey! This was an epic the way an epic is supposed to be written. Rather than using a tome to go through as many generations of a family as possible, it focuses on one generation (actually just one person), but we get to see all the good points and faults of the protagonist as well as many of the other characters. Hardly any cardboard cutouts, but rather people in their complexity. Oh, and it takes place in 14th century Norway.



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Review: The North Korean Revolution, 1945-1950

The North Korean Revolution, 1945-1950 by Charles K. Armstrong
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is probably the best book I've come across detailing the period between the end of WWII and the beginning of the Korean War, from when North Korea was established to when it tried (and briefly succeeded) to invade the South. It was during this period that Kim Il-Sung set up North Korea as we know it today.

It was also very interesting to read about the Chondogyo religion and its spread during that time. I knew next to nothing about this before. Apparently it still exists in South Korea (with over 1 million followers!)

Highlighted passages:
"To this day, the language spoken by most Koreans in Yanbian is based on the Hamgyong dialect" (p. 18)

"In Germany as many as 2 million women were raped by members of the Soviet occupation forces". (p. 44)

"The state attempted to reverse the previous hierarchy and to put those of "good songbun", or the formerly "persecuted classes", on top." (p. 72)

"In Soviet-type economies, the state does not substitute for the working class, but rather for the exploiting class. The state then "creates" the working class, which is politically and economically dependent on the state and its officials" (p. 137)

"This helped the DPRK to remain viable after the Mongolian People's Republic, the one genuine Soviet Satellite in Asia, lost its legitimacy after the collapse of communist states in Eastern Europe" (p. 190)



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Review: Requiem per zia Domenica

Requiem per zia Domenica by Plinio Martini
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book was oddly disappointing. Maybe it was just odd. It is obviously an ode to his hometown Cavergno, and to the people from his youth. However, he decided not to make it a memoir or autobiographical, but rather a novel, changing the names of the main towns, and even the name of the canton (Vedasca). I think this is usually done with memoirs in order to make them more interesting, because they can be woven around a fictitious story. However, there is no story here. It is a collection of memories and reminiscences during a funeral. The fictitious names just detracted from the story (I had to keep referring to the footnotes, which broke up the momentum), and I don't understand what was gained from using them, especially since many of the names of real people and things (the author's uncle, various priests and organizations) were kept. I must be missing something, but regardless, aside from it being quite slow (nothing really happens besides memories), and being broken up due to the fictitious names, it had some interesting points and insights into life in the middle of Valle Maggia during the early 20th century. Also some interesting terms in the local dialect.

2.5 stars.


alcuni termini:
paterare: italianizzazione del termine dial. paterá (pregare il pater noster di continuo)

forcola: stretto valico di montagna (dal lat. FURCULA, diminutivo di FURCA)

San Nicolao della Flüe: santo e patrono della Svizzera

Servisol: Self-service

Buzza: dal dial. büza. Burrasca



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Review: The Fifth Child

The Fifth Child by Doris Lessing
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This short novel kept me interested, but I can't say I understand the main protagonist (Harriett, not Ben. I mean, obviously I don't understand Ben either, but I don't expect to). She felt it better to sacrifice her 4 other children's lives (not to mention her husband's, her own, and basically everyone around her) than the life of this one who very clearly has serious problems (or is just a monster).

Having said that, it is still an enthralling book. I couldn't really tell what Ben was supposed to look like from the description. Maybe he was a neanderthal throwback (they seemed to hinting at this a couple times)? I found myself searching for images of neanderthals to get an idea.


3.5 stars

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Review: Chinese Eunuchs: The Structure of Intimate Politics

Chinese Eunuchs: The Structure of Intimate Politics by Taisuke Mitamura
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

As others have mentioned, this book is rather poorly written. I understand it is a book about Chinese Eunuchs, written in Japanese and then translated into English, but that has little to do with it. First of all, many things are asserted (including that genitals can grow back on eunuchs once they've been cut off) without sources or footnotes of any kind. The spelling of Chinese names and words is a hodgepodge (Guangdong, or 廣東, is spelled as Kuang tung, Kwangtung, Canton or Kwangung, although I'm pretty sure the last one was a typo. Also, T'ien An Gate rather than Tiananmen seems odd, although I guess it was written before Tiananmen became well-known). I feel like the translator should have been able to standardize these, preferably to Pinyin (most spellings are Wade-Giles, or variations thereof. none are pinyin).
And, once again as other commenters have mentioned, it jumps around, often hitting on subjects that have nothing to do with eunuchs, without ever really tying these subjects together.
Also, he claims that Japan never had eunuchs because they didn't conquer any other countries (uhm...). However, Korea had eunuchs, so there goes that argument.

2 stars, because there were some interesting tidbits interspersed throughout.

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Review: The Oresteian Trilogy

The Oresteian Trilogy by Aeschylus
My rating: 0 of 5 stars



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Review: Lady Audley's Secret

Lady Audley's Secret by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

So I figured out what Lady Audley's Secret, guessing that maybe something that is obvious to the reader of today might have not been so to the pre-Sherlock Holmes reader of the 1860s. And then it turned out I was wrong, and what I thought was the secret was nothing but a ruse, and it seems that the reader of today (at least, this reader) can still be tricked by the writer of the 1860s.

Regardless, this has quite a few interesting aspects: murder, bigamy, detective work (not at a Sherlock Holmes level, but interesting nonetheless), insanity, etc. But I appreciated the (slight) nuance regarding the villain the most. You don't empathize per se, but, well, you'll see.

A bit slow at points, but all in all a good find.

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Review: Uomini e no

Uomini e no by Elio Vittorini
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It's almost impossible to review this book. All in all, it is very powerful, written in a straightforward manner without nuances, but still conveying something profound. Whether you like it or not, it will certainly be unique.

This is a review of the Italian version. The style is so unique and instrumental to the book that I'm not sure how this would carry over in a translation (I see it is available in English, however).

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Review: The Hole

The Hole by Hye-Young Pyun
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This reminded me a lot of the stories from "Evening Proposal", by the same author. It had the claustrophobic feeling of being trapped and stuck, with no way out. Of course, this book took it much much further, and then things started to get twisted around.

Had I known it would be this much of a thriller (some even classify it as horror), I probably would not have read it, but I'm certainly glad I did.

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Review: On Art and Life

On Art and Life by John Ruskin
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The first essay "Nature of Gothic" was excellent. He specifies what constitutes 'Gothic' and, in doing so, discusses many other details.

Some quotes:
"Its elements are certain mental tendencies of the builders, legibly expressed in it; as fancifulness, love of variety, love of richness, and such others. Its external forms are pointed arches, vaulted roofs, etc. And unless both the elements and the forms are there, we have no right to call the style Gothic."

"Understand this clearly: You can teach a man to draw a straight line, and to cut one; to strike a curved line, and to carve it; and to copy and carve any number of given lines or forms, with admirable speed and perfect precision; and you find his work perfect of its kind: but if you ask him to think about any of those forms, to consider if he cannot find any better in his own head, he stops; his execution becomes hesitating; he thinks, and ten to one he thinks wrong; ten to one he makes a mistake in the first touch he gives to his work as a thinking being. But you have made a man of him for all that. He was only a machine before, an animated tool."

"if, as in Greek work, all the capitals are alike, and all the mouldings unvaried, then the degradation is complete; if, as in Egyptian or Ninevite work, though the manner of executing certain figures is always the same, the order of design is perpetually varied, the degradation is less total; if, as in Gothic work, there is perpetual change both in design and execution, the workman must have been altogether set free."

"A picture or poem is often little more than a feeble utterance of man’s admiration of something out of himself; but architecture approaches more to a creation of his own,..."


The second essay, however (The Work of Iron) seemed a bit odd, especially toward the end where he stopped talking about iron altogether but about how the poor are being oppressed.




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Review: Vita Nostra

Vita Nostra by Marina Dyachenko
My rating: 0 of 5 stars

Another DNF for me, so won't leave any rating.

It was probably just me, but I made it to page 307 and I don't think I can go any further.

I say it was probably just me because I don't normally like YA and I don't like any type of Sci-Fi-ish type stuff. But this had been recommended (strongly) by several people I know, and then I happened to like "An Absolutely Remarkable Thing" so much, even though it's YA, so I figured I'd give this a shot.

Anyway, it gave me the same feeling as "The Name of the Wind". The deviations from reality just seemed random, and none of them terribly original. I can't get into it too much without including spoilers, but if you like YA and/or Sci-fi, you'll probably get into it. If not, probably not.

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Review: A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail

A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail by Bill Bryson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

It's always fun to read a Bill Bryson book. The story itself is 100% anecdotal, interspersed with real information here and there almost as an aside. But it all works well, and makes reading about something you didn't think you had any interest in quite interesting.

I would advise people to read this book, and then read "Just Passin' Thru" to read more about the AT from the point of view of true hikers.

3.5 stars

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Review: Le ricette della signora Tokue

Le ricette della signora Tokue by Durian Sukegawa
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

All at once a cute story involving three unlikely acquaintances, as well as a profound insight into empathy, Hansen's disease, and the meaning of life (yes seriously). Oh, and you learn a lot about how to make Dorayaki!

I read the Italian version, but I see the English version is called "sweet bean paste". So I wonder if they anglicized all the food names in the English version (they didn't in the Italian one). I feel like it would be awkward that way.


4.5 stars, might revise to 5.

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Review: Fantasie per una fuga - Quattro racconti

Fantasie per una fuga - Quattro racconti by Edmund Cantilli
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was a mystery. Usually, even if I can't find a book on Goodreads (I had to add this one myself), I can find it on Amazon, or IBS.it, or the feltrinelli website (these last two for Italian books), or something. But I couldn't find this anywhere. I found other books by this author, but no mention of this one (hence no book cover photo).

Not only that, but all the pages at the beginning and the end of this book were torn out of my copy, leaving only the text of the stories. So I can't see any information about the year it was published, table of contents, and whatnot. For the record, I found the book in a used bookstore in Lucca and bought it on a whim (it was just 2 Euros).

Anyway, it turned out to be excellent. 4 stories. I thought the first was the weakest (I don't know the title, since that page was missing). The second (il sogno) and the fourth (il disertore) were 5 stars, while the third (Fiorenza di Sangolfo) was a solid 4. I look forward to reading more by Cantilli.

4.5 stars

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Review: L'ultima lettera

L'ultima lettera by Giovanni Soldati
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Not a bad collection everything considered. I would rate most of them at a 3, with a couple of really good ones. A couple of depressing ones too.

My favorites
Lei (inutile cercarla ancora)
Il turbante rosso


3.5 stars


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Review: Thinking About It Only Makes It Worse: And Other Lessons from Modern Life

Thinking About It Only Makes It Worse: And Other Lessons from Modern Life by David Mitchell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Excellent. From time to time I need my dose of David Mitchell being grumpy and complaining about pretty much everything.

This is a collection of articles, so it's probably best to space them out, rather than read them all in one go.

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Review: Gli anni di Nettuno sulla terra

Gli anni di Nettuno sulla terra by Anna Ruchat
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

12 stories. One for every month of the year. Each taking place in a different year (given by the news story at the beginning of each story).

Every story hovered between a 2 and a 3 for me. I guess it was showing how even average people can have interesting backstories or interesting lives, but some of them seemed trite, and some exaggerated to me. But it was nice reading about various places in Switzerland. Maybe I expected more seeing it had won the Swiss Literature Prize in 2019.

A few too many child issues in these stories for me (stillborn, newborn almost killed, abuse).

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Review: After Dark

After Dark by Haruki Murakami
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Lately my expectations for Murakami novels have been very high, so I've sometimes been (slightly) let down. This novel did the opposite. I hadn't heard much about it, so I guess I didn't expect too much in the end, but it was great. A short read, but enough to draw you into the Murakami world (it does so pretty much from the beginning) and it has just a hint of fantasy (less than Kafka on the Shore, more than South of the Border, West of the Sun).

I also enjoyed the symbolism of the dark and light (I'm sure there was more that I missed, but I at least got that much thanks to the title).

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Review: Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman

Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman by Haruki Murakami
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

After having read another short story collection by Murakami (After the quake), and feeling quite let-down, I had decided I only liked his longer works, which gave me more time to enter into his weird worlds. Well, this wasn't true for this collection. Like with any short story collection, it was somewhat hit or miss, but there ended up being quite a few hits, and very good ones at that. Here are a list of my favorites:

birthday girl
the mirror
Chance traveler
where I'm likely to find it
the kidney shaped stone
A Shinagawa Monkey

But just skip "Crabs". That was seriously gross.


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Review: Marchionne lo straniero

Marchionne lo straniero by Paolo Bricco
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

For a biography on Marchionne this book has relatively little on Marchionne. It is still a very interesting book, however, detailing the journey of Fiat and Chrysler during Marchionne's tenure, as well as plenty of background information (Torino, the Agnelli family, etc.) and also quite a bit of info on all the "side" deals, whether successful or not (Opel, GM, moving the head office to the Netherlands, etc.). Talks with unions are also discussed in details, including comparisons (and contrasts) between Italian and American unions.

As I mentioned, a very thorough book, with almost no biographical information on Marchionne (aside from the fact that he was born in Italy and moved to Canada in his teens).

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Review: Carmilla

Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

An excellent novella. Predating Dracula, and, while often similar, is also very different in many ways. The main protagonists are all female. The vampire is by no means decrepit, decaying, ghostly or gross in any way.

Spoilers ahead(??)
I confess I was a bit confused by the 'illness' affecting random people in the village (but not the main victims). Were these other victims, just not important ones? Also, what was the 'black creature"? Was that Carmilla? Or was that just some other presence of some sort that followed her around?

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