"To compensate a little for the treachery and weakness of my memory, so extreme that it has happened to me more than once to pick up again, as recent and unknown to me, books which I had read carefully a few years before . . . I have adopted the habit for some time now of adding at the end of each book . . . the time I finished reading it and the judgment I have derived of it as a whole, so that this may represent to me at least the sense and general idea I had conceived of the author in reading it." (Montaigne, Book II, Essay 10 (publ. 1580))

Tuesday, October 10, 2023

The Anthropocene Reviewed (John Green, 2021)

Book club selection, per Zach.

"Anthropocene" in title gave it a scientific feel with pretty much no relevance to the little stories.

Per the introduction, I also thought he was going to talk a lot about how humans affect the earth but then don't know much how to manage the change they're causing.  That didn't seem to happen much at all.

Apparently the guy is a pretty successful author so I'll assume it's just me who's missing out.  But these stories generally seemed pretty shallow, and weren't saved by the "reviews" at the end of each.

I liked the one about the "three farmers" in the photograph.

He's interested in communicating about his anxieties etc.  Written in Covid era and this comes through way too much.

Discussion of pain was thought-provoking. Viral meningitis.  

I liked the "World's Largest Ball of Paint" story a lot.  I need to see it. A good way to think of our miniscule contributions.

I liked the idea of measuring time in Halleys (comet circuits).

My book appears to be signed!


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