Review: Upheaval: Turning Points for Nations in Crisis

Upheaval: Turning Points for Nations in Crisis by Jared Diamond
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was an extremely interesting book, although I'm not sure how useful it is. It is a review of the recent history of 7 countries that Diamond has some connection, experience, or ties with. The countries were Finland (extremely interesting to me, given how little I knew of their recent history), Japan, Chile, Germany (also interesting, given how much I thought I already knew), Indonesia, Australia, and the United States.

To his credit, he does mention, in the final chapter, that a quantitative study should be made of this ideas. I agree, although I think he should have done this since he was writing the book.

All of this isn't to say I disagree with his 12-part model. But that sort of is the point. This model may or may not be correct, and whether I agree or disagree makes no difference until quantitative analysis is applied to it, rather than anecdotal info taken from his non-random assortment of countries.

Having said that, I reiterate that the histories of each country were extremely interesting.

I liked his statement that if he were a dictator trying to engineer Japan's downfall, he would institute the exact policy they have right now

Some notes I took regarding the US:
- Since 2005 (especially with the advent of the tea party), there has been much less will to compromise, which means fewer laws have been passed, budgets have been late more than once, and the government has shut down more than ever before.
- Under our first 43 presidents (over 220 years), only 68 nominees for government positions were opposed by filibuster. But when Obama was president republicans blocked 79 nominees in 4 years. This forced a change in laws which means minority opinions will be less represented in the future.
- "There is no way China or Mexico can destroy the US. Only we can destroy the US"

3.5 Stars

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Review: The Thief

The Thief by Fuminori Nakamura
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I'm not really sure what to think of this book. It started off more like YA, but then seemed to get more intense. Actually the ending was quite interesting, in a "thriller-esque" sort of way. Probably 3.5 stars.

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Review: The Leopard

The Leopard by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

“And the Prince, who had found Donnafugata unchanged, was found very much changed himself, for never before would he have issued so cordial an invitation; and from that moment, invisibly, began the decline of his prestige.” p. 78

I might have liked that quote even more than the famous one, "If we want things to stay as they are, things will have to change."

I'm not sure this book can be understood without knowing about the Risorgimento, the establishment of Italy as a country, and the decline of Italian nobility as a result. The author was the last in the line of a noble family from Lampedusa, so the story is basically that of his ancestors (although the characters are fictional). Apparently he wrote the book to stave off depression, and it was published posthumously.

The book shows how the "good taste" of the nobility, with all its rules and mannerisms, was being replaced by a more 'vulgar' generation of businessmen and politicians. And how the noble family had to join in the changes if they didn't want to be left behind ("If we want things to stay as they are, things will have to change."). The description of Sicily as a backdrop and the symbolism of decline throughout the novel are excellent.

All in all, the novel takes a bit of work, but it is superb.

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Review: Dirt is Good: The Advantage of Germs for Your Child's Developing Immune System

Dirt is Good: The Advantage of Germs for Your Child's Developing Immune System by Jack A. Gilbert
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The first chapters seemed to be explaining what the microbiome is. This was too scientific for me (and I'm not going to be researching the veracity of all of their studies), but I can see how they need to establish the science ahead of time. The middle of the book has the some great advice. Then the end of the book seems to get a bit too much into detail in terms of scientific detail (whether and how to conduct a fecal matter transplant, etc.). In fact, the conclusion seems to target scientists themselves, when it asks them not to get "drunk with power" in terms of their findings and wishing to help people, thereby giving unreliable information.

I really liked the advice that was given, although I feel like it could have gone into more detail as to what average parents should be doing (and trust us to be mature enough to understand everything is based on probabilities, so nothing is 100%). For example, the book says that newborns should be kept clear of strangers' microbes, while older children should be exposed to them. When should this transition occur? Should it occur all at once? Are there stages? Also, what about other settings? Are there studies regarding feeding store-bought food, just buying fruits or veggies, restaurant leftovers, organic stuff (apparently freshly killed chickens are fine)? Any differences there? Does it even matter? What about sunshine? rain? etc.

I'm not saying all of these things worry me, but I just think the useful information seemed to be crowded out by the more rare scientific questions.

Conversely I liked how readily they admit that we don't have enough data available. This should be standard practice (and would be great answers to my questions above as well). I'll also be interested in seeing what results from probiotics, which seem to hold promise but don't have enough studies quite yet.

Some of the notes I took:
- Dogs are slightly better than cats, but any pet or animal helps (in terms of asthma, hay fever, etc.)
- Going to farms is great
- Playing with all types of dirt is good
Only sterilize after hospital visits, using raw meat, etc.
Sanitizer can get rid of all microbes (including good ones, which are needed for protection)
- First month or so: keep baby separate from other people


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Review: Killing Commendatore

Killing Commendatore by Haruki Murakami
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This started off slowly for me, but then turned into another unforgettable Murakami book. I enjoyed the symbolism more than most actually. Including the juxtaposition between the protagonist and Menshiki.

For some reason I also really liked the whole incident on the coast, with the odd girl and the man with the white Subaru.

Anyway, some Murakami-isms (for your Murakami bingo): dried up well (not really a well this time), old jazz records, weird sex, faceless villain (?), odd teenager, secret passageway, unusual name, cooking, historical flashback.

Also, how is Hokkaido not part of the Bingo board?

If you enjoyed 1Q84, Wind-up bird chronicle and/or Kafka on the shore, chances are you'll enjoy this one, despite the slow beginning.

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Review: The Private Life of Plants

The Private Life of Plants by Lee Seung-u
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I'm not sure what I thought of this book and may have to come back to this once a few days have passed. Regardless, it started off pretty ragged and rugged, and ended up very poetic. Some of the symbolism seemed a bit too contrived, and some of the dialog annoyed me. I have a slight suspicion that there might have been references to Korean symbols, or aspects of its history or literature or something that don't translate, but I might be way off.

Also, isn't Namcheon part of Busan? The book makes it seem so rural, but I thought it was smack dab in the city. Is there another Namcheon?

Still, I'm curious to read his other works. 3.5 stars (for now)


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Review: Sostiene Pereira

Sostiene Pereira by Antonio Tabucchi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Hauntingly good. An excellent example (probably the best I've read so far) of how life slowly changes under a police state, taken from history rather than a make-believe dystopia.

Bellissimo ma anche inquietante. Un assaggio molto realistico (il migliore che io abbia letto) di come cambia la vita poco a poco in uno Stato di polizia, ed è tratto dalla storia, non dalla fantasia.

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Review: The Lives of Talleyrand

The Lives of Talleyrand by Crane Brinton
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I picked this up at a used bookstore in Georgia. It's a unique book, not least because it was written in 1936, and it's interesting to see how the style of biographies seems to have changed since then. All in all much of this book sounds, to me, very subjective, opinionated (he even writes, at one point "no one wants to read objective biographies") and meandering (it goes on many tangents). Some of this (especially when the author tries to show how people throughout the years have been misinterpreting Talleyrand, as well as the final two chapters) gets sort of tedious.

I also noticed a lack of footnotes or sources, which we seem to care about more these days I guess. To be fair, there is a bibliography, but it would be close to impossible to match the sources to the passages in the book itself.

The bulk of the book itself, however, is quite informative. Talleyrand is a very interesting man and the author did an excellent job of portraying him. You could probably skip the first and last two chapters though.

Interesting point: The author kept equating France's defeat in 1814 to Germany's in 1918, wondering why the terms were so lenient for the former, while so harsh for the latter, including suggesting that it was due to democracy (the leaders at Versailles had to answer to parliamentary and congressional pressure). I found that an interesting take.

Interesting quote: "One-way principles may lead to Heaven or to the scaffold - perhaps to Heaven by means of the scaffold - but not to diplomatic victories" (p.216)


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Review: Leonardo Del Vecchio. Ambizione e carisma

Leonardo Del Vecchio. Ambizione e carisma by Asmaa Aboulabil
My rating: 3 of 5 stars



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Review: Of Dogs and Walls

Of Dogs and Walls by Yūko Tsushima
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

2.5 stars for the first story (Watery Realm), 3.5 for the second (Of Dogs and Walls).

These were actually nicely written. Also, for being two separate stories (and apparently written almost 4 decades apart) they had very much in common, a single mother, a mentally challenged sibling, etc. The issue is the plots weren't all that interesting. The second story seemed to redeem itself (somewhat) at the end.

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Review: Andrew Johnson: A Biography

Andrew Johnson: A Biography by Hans L. Trefousse
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

My vote for the worst president ever. It's crazy to think a Civil Rights Bill came before him and he vetoed it, basically setting the country back 100 years (until the next President Johnson would sign the next Civil Rights Bill in the 1960s). So the South got to basically continue slavery (Black employees could be forced to work and were dragged back to their employer if they escaped).

Voted against the Smithsonian. Voted against salary increases for troops. Was pro-slavery but voted against many pro-slavery issues (including the 3/5 law), since his district of East Tennessee was mountainous and had very few slave-holders. He also voted against funding the railroad (at first) and against funding for a statue of George Washington.

He was also the only Southern Democrat politician to side with the Union, being dead against secession. After the war, many Northerners wanted to relegate the South to the status of territories (and not states). Lincoln's choice of Johnson as VP showed that he still supported statehood for the South.

Interesting how Eastern Tennessee remained more or less for the Union side throughout the war, and in fact almost became a separate state (like West Virginia split off from Virginia).

After having turned away from the Democrats to side with the Union, he basically sided with the Democrats after the war, granting statehood and amnesty to more or less everyone (stating that, due to states' rights, it was impossible to secede so they hadn't actually seceded). This made the unionists hate him, while the democrats still didn't trust him much.

The biography itself was excellent. I hope to read more by Trefousse.

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Review: Montessori from the Start: The Child at Home, from Birth to Age Three

Montessori from the Start: The Child at Home, from Birth to Age Three by Paula Polk Lillard
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Great overview if you're thinking of enrolling your child in a Montessori school or something along those lines. If you're looking for a How-to guide, or a book teaching you how to use the Montessori method with your kids, this probably isn't the best choice. It seems to jump around and touch on many different aspects generally. Some anecdotes are strewn about, otherwise it tends to just state what to do and what not to do.

It gave me a pretty clear idea as to what the Montessori method is all about, but not enough detail to implement much of it myself. It's not necessarily chronological, and doesn't necessarily end at age 3.



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