Jake > Recent Status Updates

My goodness, an embarrassment to good journalism.

A valid premise, but poorly executed.

0 stars is more than generous.

Book 1 is as advertised. Classic adventures. Comical.

Starting Book 2, I'm already finding that it's dated, with too many references to dated characters.

My guess is that JP could be Ted Kaczynski's long lost cousin. And Chapter 7's manifesto was written while holed up in a remote cabin in the woods.

Appalling lack of editorial oversight.

Oh, man this is just deadweight. A lovely bookend...if I weren't so embarrassed to shelve it in the first place. Chapter 7. Gimme a break. Minus stars possible? What a bunch a nonsense. 35 pages into Chapter 7 and there's not one word of substance yet. JC, has JP not a shred of self-awareness to know better. There's a technical turn of phrase that's on the tip of my tongue. Oh, ya. Verbal diarrhea.

Well, I dunno. Thoughtful, classic ideas for self-improvement if you're in a rut.

But the delivery lacks. A bit bloated and sermon-esque for my taste.

Excellent writer, pleasant read. Very well written and edited for clarity. Informed by a liberal arts perspective, dabbling in past, present, future.

Mixed feelings. Every page or chapter offers something meaningful in the dialogue or ideas, something substantial to chew on.

But it's dated for sure, and would never pass muster in this era.

Better than expected. Memorable, funny. Wish I had read this earlier in life.

Translation must be really good cuz it flows and style doesn't feel dated.

Highly motivating. Well written, with moving anecdotes. So I expect big changes in my life...starting tomorrow.

Trump fatigue makes this one hard to get through. Even in print, his 4th grade verbal acuity gives me a migraine. Reliving 2015-2016, rally by rally, tweet by tweet, is torture.

Despite this...I'm...

Sincerely trying to be sympathetic and non-judgmental of Trump supporters (minus Tiki torch carrying Daily Stormers). And seriously trying to understand the power and influence of rhetoric.

It's just torture having to see his rough face on the cover, to finger the jacket cover, then to read page by page about the gross ineptitude and malfeasance.

This, of course, is not a book review; but it is an initial warning that the front cover is off putting.

Old as the hills, but peppered with some timeless advice.

Perfect summer read. These short articles, only like 5 pages each. Pack a punch. Some are more useful than others though.

Brilliant, smooth, effortless prose that only Bryson could pen. Chock-full of useless factoids that keep me at the edge of my seat with glowing, greedy eyes.

Someday, when I'm in hospice care, this might be just the proper final book to digest...to really get a sense of the miracle of life and the mystery of the engineered human body.

Writing is absorbing. Just flows like a small river or brook through the quiet outdoors. Somehow, Sadly I imagine, Pinker's topic is preaching to the choir.

Already a 5-star rating--and I'm just getting through the Preface. Ooh. I'm so excited.

Each article is short but substantial, containing summary of core issues.

And the references are spot on.

Started off slow and somewhat tangential but now the short bios are good illustrations of human nature.

Nixon and Johnson especially. Tom Sawyer, less so.

Giving myself a gold star. I can do this. I can get through this. Hang tough.

Chapter 29, perhaps one of the worst of the book for its lack of cohesion. A series of unrelated, disjointed paragraphs randomly stitched together.

Chapter 30, sadly, one of the best of the book, outlining the toll on marginalized peoples of color around the world.

God-awful slog, in every way imaginable. A pox on the derelict editor.

Kinda tedious. Lots of name dropping. Can't keep track of who's who. But it reads like a detective novel.