false 12 467 456 true 5651915 read 2 true 2570949 currently-reading 9 true 2570948 to-read 3 false 3796878 maybe-read http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/75098411 to: The Associate: A Novel (Mass Market Paperback) by John Grisham
I picked this book up in an airport when I was desperate for some fiction to read, and was pleasantly surprised for the most part. It's a pretty standard Grisham legal thriller, but you can't deny that he's got a knack for making hard-to-put-down stories.

I was a bit surprised at where Grisham attempted to place the reader's sympathies. I have to imagine that there are a lot of feminists and women in general who aren't terribly happy with his treatment of rape in this novel. I think his treatment is defensible, and probably good for provoking discussion in what is a fairly one-sided perspective in today's society, but it seems like a bold position nonetheless. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/67194245 to: Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience (Paperback) by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Although there weren't any startling revelations in this book, the ideas were presented and organized well. The book has definitely helped me to think about how I approach my daily activities as well as my bigger life goals, and encouraged me to make changes in an effort to optimize my happiness.

In the context of my profession, making games, the framework of a Flow experience seems so central to the success of a game-playing experience, I'm amazed that it doesn't have a bigger mind-share within the game design community. Flow gets mentioned here and there, but Jenova Chen seems to be the only person who treats it as a serious research topic, worthy of in-depth analysis.

Although not as surprising, I also find it sad that other general research doesn't treat Flow, or happiness in general, as an ultimate goal. It seems like too much research and policy debate accepts implicit goals like extending lifespans, increasing productivity, increasing or distributing wealth, and others without asking whether these goals also align with making people happier overall.
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/73383642 to: Incandescence (Paperback) by Greg Egan
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/67193933 to: Dark Integers And Other Stories (Paperback) by Greg Egan
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/58787556 Quicksilver (Baroque Cycle, #1) by Neal Stephenson
bookshelves: currently-reading
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/59373187 The Unlikely Disciple: A Sinner's Semester at America's Holiest University (Hardcover) by Kevin Roose
bookshelves: to-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/58788738 Frankenstein (Paperback) by Mary Shelley
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/58787848 The Color of Magic (Discworld, #1) by Terry Pratchett
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/58786967 Lord Foul's Bane (The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever, #1) by Stephen R. Donaldson
bookshelves: to-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/57553299 The Strain (The Strain Trilogy, #1) by Guillermo Del Toro
bookshelves: to-read
]]>