Steven D. Ward's Blog, page 4
May 11, 2014
Review: Too Big to Know: Rethinking Knowledge Now That the Facts Aren’t the Facts, Experts Are Everywhere, and the Smartest Person in the Room Is the Room
Too Big to Know: Rethinking Knowledge Now That the Facts Aren’t the Facts, Experts Are Everywhere, and the Smartest Person in the Room Is the Room by David Weinberger
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book was a ‘sleeper’ hit with me, on account of the fact that I picked it up for really cheap on a sale on Audible.com. I’d never heard of it before but the title and description intrigued me, so in spite of the fact that I usually rigorously vet the books I buy, especially in the audiobook format,...
May 10, 2014
Review: The Compass of Pleasure: How Our Brains Make Fatty Foods, Orgasm, Exercise, Marijuana, Generosity, Vodka, Learning, and Gambling Feel So Good
The Compass of Pleasure: How Our Brains Make Fatty Foods, Orgasm, Exercise, Marijuana, Generosity, Vodka, Learning, and Gambling Feel So Good by David J. Linden
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This was a pretty interesting book that will probably require some later review for best retention of some of the more detailed information contained inside, because it does get fairly technical.
Still, there were some attention-grabbing gems that stood out, such as the information on addiction rates of various...
May 7, 2014
May 5, 2014
Review: The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined
The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined by Steven Pinker
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I delayed reading this book for a long time based solely on the takedown offered by Chris Ryan in his book Sex at Dawn. After getting a steep discount on Better Angels and tearing through it in a few days, while I think Ryan’s criticisms do have merit, they really only apply to one narrow sliver of the whole story (specifically, speculation on the level of violence among pre-historic humans).
T...
May 1, 2014
Review: 50 Things You’re Not Supposed To Know: Religion
50 Things You’re Not Supposed To Know: Religion by Daniele Bolelli
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
You won’t be an expert on world religions after reading this book, but you will have learned some fascinating tidbits and factoids about them.
I really enjoy books like this (many short chapters) especially for reading as I fall asleep. It’s not easy to lose my place and serves as a good counter-balance for the heavier tomes I find myself slogging through (both in terms of reading difficulty and length)...
April 29, 2014
Review: The Whole-Brain Child
The Whole-Brain Child by Dr Tina Payne Bryson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I’ve read a not insubstantial number of books on neurobiology and psychology in spite of not being a professional in the field (I’m a teacher), so I thought this book might be a bit elementary for me.
It’s true that it was basic and didn’t get too complicated with the science, but the authors’ aims were not about presenting the latest research, they were more about showing how what we know about the brain and human psycholo...
April 28, 2014
Review: The Secret Life of the Grown-up Brain: The Surprising Talents of the Middle-Aged Mind
The Secret Life of the Grown-up Brain: The Surprising Talents of the Middle-Aged Mind by Barbara Strauch
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
The book is great for what it is: A short, light, overview of current brain research. I didn’t find it earth-shattering, but it was a decent review for me of information I’d recently read in other books.
View all my reviews
April 26, 2014
Review: The Talent Code: Unlocking the Secret of Skill in Sports, Art, Music, Math, and Just About Everything Else
The Talent Code: Unlocking the Secret of Skill in Sports, Art, Music, Math, and Just About Everything Else by Daniel Coyle
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book had been on my radar for a long time but for some reason I never picked it up until I recently got it on sale. I proceeded to burn through it in an afternoon, along the way picking up many tips for my own learning, as well as the teaching I do in the classroom and in the gym.
I do have one bone to pick with the authors, though: The fact t...
Review: Forgotten Ally: China’s World War II, 1937-1945
Forgotten Ally: China’s World War II, 1937-1945 by Rana Mitter
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Of the 40 books I’ve read so far in 2014, this is the first one that I couldn’t make it all the way through. This isn’t necessarily the fault of the author though. Perhaps I just erred in choosing a book that I did not already have an interest in.
As someone with a casual interest in World War II and modern East Asian history (particularly the Korean peninsula), I found the description of this book very int...
Review: The Talent Code: Unlocking the Secret of Skill in Sports, Art, Music, Math, and Just About Everything Else
The Talent Code: Unlocking the Secret of Skill in Sports, Art, Music, Math, and Just About Everything Else by Daniel Coyle
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This book had been on my radar for a long time but for some reason I never picked it up until I recently got it on sale. I proceeded to burn through it in an afternoon, along the way picking up many tips for my own learning, as well as the teaching I do in the classroom and in the gym.
A great listen for anyone interested in learning new skills or...
