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Peter added

The Annotated Hobbit: The Hobbit, Or, There and Back Again
by J.R.R. Tolkien

read in June, 2012

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I didn’t remember The Hobbit being so directed towards children. That’s probably because I last experienced it as a child. I listened to it then on audiobook, and I only had vague recollections of it: the battle with Smaug, flashes of dragon scales a...more

Peter made a comment on his review of Tinkers

"Thanks for the post, Amy. I may well give that a try.

Good idea with Mark Brown--if you introduce children to modernism at a young age, maybe they'll...more "

Peter added

The Pillars of the Earth (The Pillars of the Earth, #1)
by Ken Follett (Goodreads Author)

read in June, 2010

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I thought The Pillars of the Earth was going to be a long, technical novel that I’d have to muscle through--it’s almost 1000 pages long, it’s set in the 1100s, and the cover is decorated with a diagrammatic sketch of a church. These are not the typic...more

Peter made a comment on his review of The Thief Lord

"Mason wrote: "when did this book take place?"

Good question, Mason. Based on references to airplanes and such, it seems to be set broadly in the presen...more "

Peter added

Point Omega
by Don DeLillo

read in February, 2010

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Hyper-abstract intellectualization. Overly-ruminative prose peppered with mysterious and incomplete sentences. Pages of characters projecting thoughts onto others. Ugh.

I get what DeLillo is going for in Point Omega: the environments that we create an...more

Peter added

The Phantom Tollbooth
by Norton Juster

read in December, 2009

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When he left the Navy, Norton Juster began writing a non-fiction book about urban planning. As an outlet from the grueling work, though, he spent his free time concocting the imaginative scenes that later became The Phantom Tollbooth. One publisher’s...more

Peter added

Better
by Atul Gawande

read in November, 2008

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Oh, I wanted this to be great! Alas, only part of it is. To wit: Gawande’s umbrella themes dominate the book, but they are a distraction from his best conclusions, which are tucked quietly in the afterword.

In his introduction, Gawande asks, “What doe...more Oh, I wanted this to be great! Alas, only part of it is. To wit: Gawande’s umbrella themes dominate the book, but they are a distraction from his best conclusions, which are tucked quietly in the afterword.

In his introduction, Gawande asks, “What does it take to be good at something in which failure can be so easy, so effortless?”—and even though he says, “This is a book about performance in medicine,” the question applies not just to medical practitioners. All of us can ask the same question about our jobs and our lives. What does it take to be good? What does it take to be better? This is why I bought and read Better.

Gawande’s answers are anti-climactic at first. He breaks his results down into three categories: diligence, doing right, and ingenuity. Fine. He tells us stories that demonstrate each one, and we see clearly in these stories how being diligent, doing right, and taking fresh approaches improved outcomes. This is a familiar formula: big themes, some examples, conclusion. Great.

Sure, the stories are sometimes fascinating, but the problem is that diligence, doing right, and ingenuity are the kinds of words thrown up in primary colors on black-bordered posters with images of skyscapes, mountain-tops, or waterfalls. They are noble ideals, but they are vague as pieces of advice for doing what we do better. I would imagine it’s hard even for doctors to internalize these lessons.

But then comes the afterword, where the gold is buried: “Suggestions for Becoming a Positive Deviant”—which, for non-statistics-types, means “suggestions for becoming better.” Huzzah! There are five: 1) Ask an unscripted question, 2) Don’t complain, 3) Count something, 4) Write something, and 5) Change. This is the good stuff. Gawande’s final suggestions here are simple and applicable to anything. They subtly encourage creativity. They are suggestions that teach. If I have an office next year, I will post them on my wall.

Do I recommend it? Yes, if only for the afterword. The stories are well told, too, I guess.
Would I teach it? No. For non-fiction writing, I might use some of Gawande’s New Yorker articles, though.
Lasting impressions: Perfectly fine stories sorted by theme and a summary that makes them all worthwhile.(less)

Peter added

Jonathan Livingston Seagull
by Richard Bach

read in February, 2009

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I confess to enjoying this book more than I like it. The writing is often heavy-handed, and the story is a generic hero epic. But who, if you dream of adventure, can deny it?

Jonathan Livingston Seagull is an outcast member of his flock. Unlike other...more

Peter added

Watchmen
by Alan Moore

read in March, 2009

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In the classic noir scenario, we imagine a private eye in a smoky office in some small town—or at least in a small forgotten section of a big town. The scale is intimate, and the detective gets drawn into the complicated relationships that knock ever...more

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Peter is now friends with Sara Elkin
May 14, 2013 04:25pm · like
Peter added The Annotated Hobbit: The Hobbit, Or, There and Back Again by J.R.R. Tolkien read in June, 2012	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I didn’t remember The Hobbit being so directed towards children. That’s probably because I last experienced it as a child. I listened to it then on audiobook, and I only had vague recollections of it: the battle with Smaug, flashes of dragon scales a...more
Jun 02, 2012 01:41pm · see review
Peter made a comment on his review of Tinkers "Thanks for the post, Amy. I may well give that a try. Good idea with Mark Brown--if you introduce children to modernism at a young age, maybe they'll...more "
Jul 26, 2010 05:43am · see review
Peter added The Pillars of the Earth (The Pillars of the Earth, #1) by Ken Follett (Goodreads Author) read in June, 2010	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I thought The Pillars of the Earth was going to be a long, technical novel that I’d have to muscle through--it’s almost 1000 pages long, it’s set in the 1100s, and the cover is decorated with a diagrammatic sketch of a church. These are not the typic...more
Jul 09, 2010 08:27am · see review
Peter made a comment on his review of The Thief Lord "Mason wrote: "when did this book take place?" Good question, Mason. Based on references to airplanes and such, it seems to be set broadly in the presen...more "
Mar 06, 2010 11:32am · see review
Peter added Point Omega by Don DeLillo read in February, 2010	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Hyper-abstract intellectualization. Overly-ruminative prose peppered with mysterious and incomplete sentences. Pages of characters projecting thoughts onto others. Ugh. I get what DeLillo is going for in Point Omega: the environments that we create an...more
Feb 27, 2010 07:11am · see review
Peter added The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster read in December, 2009	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
When he left the Navy, Norton Juster began writing a non-fiction book about urban planning. As an outlet from the grueling work, though, he spent his free time concocting the imaginative scenes that later became The Phantom Tollbooth. One publisher’s...more
Dec 21, 2009 04:59pm · see review
Peter added Better by Atul Gawande read in November, 2008	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Oh, I wanted this to be great! Alas, only part of it is. To wit: Gawande’s umbrella themes dominate the book, but they are a distraction from his best conclusions, which are tucked quietly in the afterword. In his introduction, Gawande asks, “What doe...more
Mar 31, 2009 11:18am · see review
Peter added Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach read in February, 2009	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I confess to enjoying this book more than I like it. The writing is often heavy-handed, and the story is a generic hero epic. But who, if you dream of adventure, can deny it? Jonathan Livingston Seagull is an outcast member of his flock. Unlike other...more
Mar 22, 2009 11:38am · see review
Peter added Watchmen by Alan Moore read in March, 2009	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
In the classic noir scenario, we imagine a private eye in a smoky office in some small town—or at least in a small forgotten section of a big town. The scale is intimate, and the detective gets drawn into the complicated relationships that knock ever...more
Mar 03, 2009 11:56am · see review

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