Review: Ask Iwata: Words of Wisdom from Satoru Iwata, Nintendo's Legendary CEO

Ask Iwata: Words of Wisdom from Satoru Iwata, Nintendo's Legendary CEO by Satoru Iwata
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Some great nuggets here, but otherwise maybe you need to be more familiar with Iwata. Still, a quick, easy read. 

Some of my notes:

"The trouble is that people feel better when they have their hands full, so until they find the bottlenecks, they tend to sweat over whatever issues they encounter. Before taking any action, you should identify the most problematic areas and figure out what you, and only you, can do to fix them." (p. 29)

"If you rely on what we might call a short-sighted cleverness, making decisions solely by comparing options and deciding "This one's better", you're bound to wind up on the road more often traveled. A major reason why this hasn't happened at Nintendo is that we've maintained clear objectives" (p. 32)

"Anything a computer can do for you should be left to a computer" (p. 138)

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Review: The Last Voyage of Columbus: Being the Epic Tale of the Great Captain's Fourth Expedition, Including Accounts of Mutiny, Shipwreck, and Discovery

The Last Voyage of Columbus: Being the Epic Tale of the Great Captain's Fourth Expedition, Including Accounts of Mutiny, Shipwreck, and Discovery by Martin Dugard
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Quite an interesting find. This focuses on Columbus's last voyage, which is probably his most interesting (maybe aside from his second), but it is hardly ever mentioned, since it isn't where he "discovered the new world". However, it is where he was arrested and thrown in jail for possible death, where he convinced some Native Americans he had supernatural powers by "causing" a lunar eclipse, and was his last trip and last attempt at being a governor in the Americas. 

Plenty of background information is given as well, obviously, including quite a bit of interesting information about indigenous peoples you don't often read about. 

All in all, a great read. 

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Review: The Third and Final Continent

The Third and Final Continent by Jhumpa Lahiri
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is a re-read, and I have to say I still enjoyed it. In fact, reading it on its own (without the other short stories in the collection) might have made it stand out more. 

I keep telling myself to read more Lahiri. I really need to make that one of my new year's resolutions. 

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Review: Blue Highways

Blue Highways by William Least Heat-Moon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I waited until I was in the US to read this, and I'm glad I did. It's an excellent re-introduction to life in the US off the beaten track.

It was also great to follow his travels on Google Maps, from Shelbyville, KY, to Selma, AL, to Wanchese, NC (oftentimes using Streetview to see what has changed). 

Reading about places like Noname, TN, and Frenchman, NV was very interesting. As were so many of the stories and people he encountered. And stories like how Othello, NJ got its name. 

For some reason I also made note of some of the Books he mentioned when talking to people: 

Through Missouri on a mule (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8654504-through-missouri-on-a-mule)

The town that died laughing (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9862753-the-town-that-died-laughing)

Maryland's Right, Tight Isle (not on GR, but about Smith Island)

I really liked his style of writing, which made it a pleasure to read through this book. 

I thought it would be interesting to revisit some of the places he went to, and figured someone must have done so already. And sure enough, I found this: http://www.bluehighwaysrevisited.net/About-Us.html

Apparently they also wrote a book, with side by side photos. Anyway, not sure if I'll check it out, but interesting nonetheless. 

Also, just for my notes, here is his Calendar rating for finding places to get “honest food at just prices.”  

   No calendar: Same as an interstate pit stop.

   One calendar: Preprocessed food assembled in New Jersey

   Two calendars: Only if fish trophies present.

   Three calendars: Can't miss on the farm-boy breakfasts.

   Four calendars: Try the ho-made pie too.

   Five calendars: Keep it under your hat, or they'll franchise. 

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Review: Bricchiche Fiorentine

Bricchiche Fiorentine by Foresto Niccolai
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Great tidbits about Florence and its history. I ended up bookmarking a bunch of places on Google Maps, and I look forward to checking them out next time I go there. 

Some of my notes:

Festa della Rifocolona

Fiera degli uccelli

Fiera dell'Impruneta (and a lot about Impruneta, like its Madonna)

The piano was invented in Florence in 1700 by a Padovano called Bartolomeo Cristofori). 

Glasses were invented by Salvino D'armato, from Florence. 

The story "Un amore segreto" (p. 206) was interesting:

in 1300 Ippolito Buontalenti secretly loved Dianora dei Bardi. He was caught trying to sneak into her house (Palazzo Bardi), and rather than implicate her, said he was trying to rob it. While being conducted to his execution, Dianora rushed out and publicly admitted to their secret rendez-vous. So the story goes the parents were touched and approved of the match. 

Another story (Una giovane sposa ritenuta morta, p. 224) was also nice. Ginevra degli Almieri married Francesco Angolanti, but was in love with another man. After 4 years she got sick and was presumed dead and put in a coffin. She woke up, had the strength to open the casket, and went back home, where her husband thought she was a ghost. As did her parents. So she ran to her lover who took her in and they married. The ex-husband sued, but the courts said "che per essere stato disciolto il primo matrimonio dalla morte, poteva la donna legittimamente passare ad un altro marito". 

The origins of Vinsanto are excellent. Nothing holy about it, but when trying to reconcile with the Greek church it was invented (to be similar to the Greek wine), and people proclaimed that it was "Di Xantos". 

Also, the Florentines apparently called the French "I Nuvoloni", since when they were issuing edicts they all started with "nous voulons". 

I may have to check out the other books in this series

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Review: The Club: Johnson, Boswell, and the Friends Who Shaped an Age

The Club: Johnson, Boswell, and the Friends Who Shaped an Age by Leo Damrosch
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A club that included Edward Gibbon, Adam Smith, Samuel Johnson, James Boswell, Edmund Burke, David Hume, and many other recognizable names, most of them before they were famous.

This book is more a story of Samuel Johnson and James Boswell, as well as a brief biography of some of the main founding members, without mentioning other members over the years (the club apparently still exists now). Just the final part talked of the club throughout the years). 

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Review: Quell'estate di sangue e di luna

Quell'estate di sangue e di luna by Eraldo Baldini
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Excellent book. The suspense lasted a while, in a crescendo, and when the action hit, at first I thought it was weird and far-fetched, but in the end it turned out quite good. A juxtaposition of people doing well in a completely unknown location (the moon and space), while others are having disaster occur on land they've known for generations. 

I look forward to reading more by Baldini (and Fabbri).

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Review: A Moveable Feast: The Restored Edition

A Moveable Feast: The Restored Edition by Ernest Hemingway
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is sort of in the style of "Memoirs of Montparnasse", and in fact there is quite a bit of overlap in terms of people mentioned. In fact, this can tie into Giacometti biography (although no overlap of people as far as I can tell), or even Sue Roe's "In Montmarte". Regardless, it's always fun to read about Paris during this era, so much more so when written by Hemingway.

There are many curious parts, like how he keeps repeatings that Ernest Walsh was "marked for death". I'm not sure what that meant. Curious also to see how nice he finds Ezra Pound (although Gertrude Stein seems to hate him), but how much he seems to hate Ford Maddox Ford (always complaining about his breath). Also, the digs at F. Scott Fitzgerald didn't seem very becoming (even more so the digs at his wife). But then again, Hemingway never claims to be the nicest person, and seems quite unapologetic about it.

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Review: Hemingway's Paris

Hemingway's Paris by Robert E. Gajdusek


A collection of quotes by and about Hemingway, grouped together based on various topics. Also with some photos, mostly of locations frequented by Hemingway, but taken in the 1970s. Nice to look through, especially if you've read "A Moveable Feast" or any biography of Hemingway. 

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