Review: 10% Less Democracy: Why You Should Trust Elites a Little More and the Masses a Little Less

10% Less Democracy: Why You Should Trust Elites a Little More and the Masses a Little Less by Garett Jones
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

During this whole book I found myself wondering:

A) What the author would make of Switzerland’s system, which is very different from what he is espousing, yet I think by any measure is a pretty successful one.

B) What Nassim Taleb would make of this book. I’m not 100% sure why, but I was very curious. 

The first part of the book was reminiscent of what Fareed Zakaria wrote about in an older book (I think “Future of Freedom”), wherein he shows how government bodies that are somewhat less democratic (the Fed, The court system, etc.) are more respected than, say, congress. The second part touched more on what the author calls an “epistocracy”. This sounds like one of those things that sound great in theory but are almost impossible to fulfill in reality. In fact, he seems short of details as to how to achieve this epistocracy. 

I found the chapter on Singapore quite interesting, as well as the fact that “The Italian law of June 30, 1912, granted the vote to illiterate people, but only on the condition that they had reached their thirtieth year or had fulfilled their military obligations.” (p. 107). 

View all my reviews

Review: Botticelli's Secret: The Lost Drawings and the Rediscovery of the Renaissance

Botticelli's Secret: The Lost Drawings and the Rediscovery of the Renaissance by Joseph Luzzi
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

My impression is that this would have made a fascinating article. As a book it was a tad long-winded. Part of this is probably my fault, since I listened to the audiobook, and I understand the physical book contains the illustrations in question. 

This is basically a short primer on Dante, on Botticelli, and then the interesting journey that Botticelli's Divine Comedy illustrations. 

View all my reviews

Review: I Will Teach You to Be Rich: No Guilt. No Excuses. No BS. Just a 6-Week Program That Works

I Will Teach You to Be Rich: No Guilt. No Excuses. No BS. Just a 6-Week Program That Works by Ramit Sethi
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This all seems to be very sound advice, and this book will be very useful and probably a must-read if:

1. You are young-ish (ideally below 30, definitely below 40)

2. You work for a company (there is a section on entrepreneur options, but it seems haphazard and just an add-on)

3. You live in the US. RothIRAs, 401Ks and other tax strategies are key to this book, and obviously non-Americans don't have access to these. The best you can do is see if there are any equivalents in your own country. 

Having said that, this is all definitely legitimate and good advice.

View all my reviews

Review: A Wave of Thanks: and Other Human Gestures 31 Quick Stories

A Wave of Thanks: and Other Human Gestures 31 Quick Stories by Bear Jack Gebhardt
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



View all my reviews

Review: Life Ceremony

Life Ceremony by Sayaka Murata
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Very odd, but entertaining and thought-provoking stories. Most of them dealt with our attitudes toward life, sex, food, etc. and they make you question societal norms. Recommended.

View all my reviews

Review: Deep Blue Night

Deep Blue Night by In-ho Choi
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

2 short stories, both of them pretty good, although I didn't find either as compelling as "Another Man's City". 

View all my reviews

Review: The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill: Visions of Glory, 1874-1932

The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill: Visions of Glory, 1874-1932 by William Manchester
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It's amazing how much information we have about Churchill. Much of this biography is day-by-day and even minute-by-minute details of conversations, decisions, etc. Regardless, a very interesting book. I look forward to reading the other two. 

And honestly my favorite part may have been reading about his retorts and one-liners. 

View all my reviews

Review: A Toy City

A Toy City by Lee Dong-Ha
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

An interesting, somewhat melancholic look at the city as it was in post-war Korea, and how it compared to the countryside. Pretty good for a short story, although I still don't really get what happened with the bouncer kids who invited the narrator to the movies. That arc seemed odd. I also couldn't really tell why the narrator quit his job, except that he missed his family I guess, despite the fact that they were all in the same city... 

View all my reviews