Kevin McDonagh > Recent Status Updates

Showing 1-30 of 102
Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 114 of 338 of Planet Palm: How Palm Oil Ended Up in Everything — and Endangered the World
Didn't appreciate the intro which felt hurried and formulaic but after getting past that the chapters are fascinating. I had associated Plantations with cotton and sugar but 50% we're oil palm? Each chapter is a separate topic likely reformatted from a journalist commission. Dense and interesting.
Apr 19, 2025 05:44AM Add a comment
Planet Palm: How Palm Oil Ended Up in Everything — and Endangered the World

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 380 of 528 of Edison: A Biography
This book is making me very happy. An incredible character on a journey so easy to write about.
Jan 18, 2025 06:46AM Add a comment
Edison: A Biography

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is 10% done with Built to Fail: The Inside Story of Blockbuster's Inevitable Bust
There's a whole lot more heart than than I expected in this recital
Jul 26, 2024 12:19PM Add a comment
Built to Fail: The Inside Story of Blockbuster's Inevitable Bust

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is 80% done with Chip War: The Fight for the World's Most Critical Technology
This is great. Far beyond my expectations, an achievement!
Jul 08, 2024 12:41PM Add a comment
Chip War: The Fight for the World's Most Critical Technology

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is finished with The Complete Future Shocks, Volume One (1)
Blast guests off their seats by adding this thrill power to your bathroom.
Jul 08, 2024 12:30PM Add a comment
The Complete Future Shocks, Volume One (1)

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 200 of 1088 of Infinite Jest
No doubt this is great literature but wooft. It's like turning a radio nob tuning into aspects of america.
Jul 04, 2024 12:20PM Add a comment
Infinite Jest

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is 50% done with In Ascension
This is one of those rare books which improves after a few chapters. I get the district feeling that the author wrote the first few chapters last in a rush to flesh out some context they felt missing and join up the more exciting part of the story but I fear some people may never get there. Oceanography, sociology, technology, space and fauna are a good mix though.
May 26, 2024 01:15AM Add a comment
In Ascension

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 25 of 498 of Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies
Lots of interesting gems in here but it's certainly not as readable as Sapians. Although the text is quite dry it pieces together a very clear historical narrative which seems like it's attracting quite a lot of flack https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorian...
Mar 23, 2024 01:48AM Add a comment
Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 106 of 320 of Thomas Kinkade: The Artist in the Mall
This is hilarious. Loving a far broader appraisal of Kinkade beyond "s£&t".
Mar 13, 2024 03:53PM Add a comment
Thomas Kinkade: The Artist in the Mall

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 110 of 1088 of Infinite Jest
The Author seems to wander into adjacent aisles like a kid in a supermarket. The prose is really compelling.
Feb 03, 2024 08:14AM Add a comment
Infinite Jest

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 61 of 1088 of Infinite Jest
This is going to take a while. A great teammate of vocabulary on display and cool how it flips into different regional dialects. So far it's a bit 'magnolia' in it's having concurrent stories. No real grasp of what if anything is unraveling but the writing will keep me reading.
Jan 25, 2024 03:13PM Add a comment
Infinite Jest

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 294 of 400 of Fulfillment: Winning and Losing in One-Click America
I’m enjoying each of the chapters, it feels like a digest of long form opinion articles with ample citations. I’m a sucker for good research and I often get as much or more enjoyment out of following up on the notes in appendixes.
Oct 30, 2023 05:05PM Add a comment
Fulfillment: Winning and Losing in One-Click America

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is 25% done with Metamorphosis and Other Stories (Penguin Modern Classics)
Flew through Metamorphosis, poignant read on how relationships change. Kafka wrote seven books and never published any of the them during his life. Dead at 40. Cultural icons never age as I grow fungal.
Sep 16, 2023 01:43PM Add a comment
Metamorphosis and Other Stories (Penguin Modern Classics)

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 288 of 720 of Moby-Dick or, The Whale
This is certainly a great big journey, a great early example of how literature can take you on experiences you may never want to partake in yourself. So many whales being killed and harvested for the oil in their sculls, makes for some challenging reading.
Feb 04, 2023 03:37AM Add a comment
Moby-Dick or, The Whale

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 160 of 720 of Moby-Dick or, The Whale
Kind of old world American so far. I enjoy the buddy comedy relationship between the native American and the westerner. Ahab's just been introduced and the crew seem to have changed the tempo. It's written in very short chapters which makes it a bit harder to read in one sitting but easier to read in chunks.
Jan 26, 2023 03:53AM Add a comment
Moby-Dick or, The Whale

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 80 of 170 of Dubliners
Such rewarding moments from within a time and town in which I've never lived but with which I feel completely familiar.
Jan 09, 2023 05:51AM Add a comment
Dubliners

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 127 of 250 of The Demolished Man
Racey pulp fiction, reminiscent of the 'space merchants'. What I like is that the story seems like a who dunnit or chase, but all the final conclusions seem to constantly be given away, then aha! There's more action. Quite rewarding.
Jan 02, 2023 03:05PM Add a comment
The Demolished Man

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 290 of 512 of Gillespie
The style is fascinating. Completely different to anything I've read. This would be a very difficult book if it weren't for my recognising the Calvinist environment in which it's set. This is a very natively Scottish tale.
Oct 10, 2022 02:51PM Add a comment
Gillespie

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 136 of 352 of The Metaverse: And How It Will Revolutionize Everything
Surprising little insights from philosophy to recent infrastructure history. Really quite enjoying this one.
Aug 02, 2022 03:05PM Add a comment
The Metaverse: And How It Will Revolutionize Everything

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 87 of 352 of The Metaverse: And How It Will Revolutionize Everything
Pleasantly surprised at it’s in-depth and well rounded introduction. I’ve just read nearly 100 pages of set-up which supplied ample context for the lamen and also for experts. Tbh I was worried this was going to be more of a puff piece as an investment thesis for a VC fund but it’s already impressed me in it’s holistic rebuttal to the loaded term ‘metaverse’.
Jul 31, 2022 03:17PM Add a comment
The Metaverse: And How It Will Revolutionize Everything

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is 48% done with Upgrade
Twist, twist, bang, bang!
Jul 26, 2022 02:36AM Add a comment
Upgrade

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is 32% done with Upgrade
Bam bam bam. Blake Crouch always quotes such a satisfying hyper mix of science and melodrama
Jul 24, 2022 10:48AM Add a comment
Upgrade

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is 80% done with Ender’s Game (Ender's Saga, #1)
Different to how I imagined. Enjoyable, and much more focused on a central character's feelings than most sci-fi books.
Jul 15, 2022 03:51AM 2 comments
Ender’s Game (Ender's Saga, #1)

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 37 of 658 of How to Reassess Your Chess: Chess Mastery Through Chess Imbalances
Chess books which are more than just move by move games are much easier to read. Just a little less concentration demanded. Pretty sensible stuff speaking about ‘imbalances’.
Mar 22, 2022 02:38PM Add a comment
How to Reassess Your Chess: Chess Mastery Through Chess Imbalances

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 201 of 256 of Logical Chess: Move By Move: Every Move Explained New Algebraic Edition
Took it on holiday and still trying to get through it.
Mar 11, 2022 07:24AM Add a comment
Logical Chess: Move By Move: Every Move Explained New Algebraic Edition

Kevin McDonagh
Kevin McDonagh is on page 125 of 256 of Logical Chess: Move By Move: Every Move Explained New Algebraic Edition
Slow going, I pick this up and review a game every now and then. They are all really good games. It's so simple watching someone else win chess logically...
Feb 07, 2022 02:39PM Add a comment
Logical Chess: Move By Move: Every Move Explained New Algebraic Edition

« previous 1 3 4
Follow Kevin's updates via RSS