Atul (toolness) - San Francisco, CA (25 books)

Atul is now friends with Andrew Maier
Apr 19, 2019 02:54PM · like
Atul wants to read The Secret Service by Wendy Walker (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. 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
Jun 27, 2018 02:52PM · like
Atul voted on a poll EReader users: do you highlight? He voted for: Yes, I like to highlight
Feb 13, 2013 05:31AM · like · take the poll
Atul wants to read Pragmatic Thinking and Learning: Refactor Your Wetware by Andy Hunt (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. 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
Jul 25, 2010 08:31PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Pragmatic Thinking and Learning by Andy Hunt. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Pragmatic Thinking and Learning by Andy Hunt <iframe id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Atul made a comment on Heather’s profile " Heather has an encyclopedic knowledge of almost everything, which is why some of her friends call her Heatherpedia. "
Jul 24, 2010 02:28PM
Atul rated a book really liked it The Director's Vision: A Concise Guide to the Art of 250 Great Filmmakers by Geoff Andrew	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. 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
This book is by no means what it is advertised as: it's not a "concise guide" to the art of 250 directors, it doesn't tell you "how the world's greatest filmmakers create their spellbinding visions" and "the secrets behind their unique styles." In fa ...more
Jul 24, 2010 01:35PM · like · see review
Atul rated a book it was amazing The Moviegoer by Walker Percy	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. 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 get everything there was to learn from this book on my first read. The plot itself isn't complex, but the observations and thoughts of the main character are. This is the kind of book in which I can turn to any random page and have something ...more
Jul 24, 2010 01:33PM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Moviegoer by Walker Percy. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Moviegoer by Walker Percy <iframe id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Atul rated a book it was amazing Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. 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'm a native-born American citizen with Indian (immigrant) parents, and I've rarely felt particularly "Indian", as my parents raised me without telling me much about my cultural heritage. The little they did tell me about Indian culture regarded how ...more
Jul 24, 2010 01:31PM · 1 like · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri <iframe id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Atul rated a book it was amazing The Future of the Internet and How to Stop It by Jonathan L. Zittrain	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. 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've posted a full review of this book on my blog at http://www.toolness.com/wp/?p=53.
Jul 24, 2010 01:25PM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Future of the Internet and How to Stop It by Jonathan L. Zittrain. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Future of the Internet and How to Stop It by Jonathan L. Zittrain <iframe id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Atul rated a book really liked it The Value of Nothing: How to Reshape Market Society and Redefine Democracy by Raj Patel	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. 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 have posted a full review on my blog at http://www.toolness.com/wp/?p=756.
Jul 24, 2010 01:17PM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Value of Nothing by Raj Patel. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Value of Nothing by Raj Patel <iframe id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">

Atul is now friends with Andrew Maier

Atul wants to read

The Secret Service
by Wendy Walker (Goodreads Author)

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Atul voted on a poll

EReader users: do you highlight?

He voted for: Yes, I like to highlight

Atul wants to read

Pragmatic Thinking and Learning by Andy Hunt

Pragmatic Thinking and Learning: Refactor Your Wetware
by Andy Hunt (Goodreads Author)

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Atul made a comment on Heather’s profile

" Heather has an encyclopedic knowledge of almost everything, which is why some of her friends call her Heatherpedia. "

Atul rated a book really liked it

The Director's Vision: A Concise Guide to the Art of 250 Great Filmmakers
by Geoff Andrew

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This book is by no means what it is advertised as: it's not a "concise guide" to the art of 250 directors, it doesn't tell you "how the world's greatest filmmakers create their spellbinding visions" and "the secrets behind their unique styles." In fa This book is by no means what it is advertised as: it's not a "concise guide" to the art of 250 directors, it doesn't tell you "how the world's greatest filmmakers create their spellbinding visions" and "the secrets behind their unique styles." In fact, it's rather misguided in my opinion because it uses auteur theory and assumes that the director is the one who creates the entire picture contained in the movie frame, as though the he or she is the "painter" of an entire film's moving image; but in fact a very large part of what goes into the frame is done by the cinematographer, the production designer, and many other people. It surprises me because I don't even think the word "cinematographer" is mentioned even once in the whole book, yet the cinematographer often puts at least as much work into a film's visuals as a director, if not more. The author of this book is also quite opinionated and really ticks me off sometimes when he bashes some of my favorite directors, claiming that their work is "half-baked humanism" and "insubstantial" while giving no real reasons to support his claims because he's only got half a page to tell us about the director, his life, his visual style, and his films.

On the other hand, though, this book is a blast to just flip through. I haven't heard of a lot of the directors in this book, and often one of the half-page frame grabs alone has made me want to go out and get one of a director's films from my local library. Indeed, a lot of great directors such as War-Kai Wong, Takeshi Kitano, Nicholas Roeg, and Krystof Kieslowski were introduced to me through this book, mainly through the stunning visuals of their movie stills; I actually don't value the text very much because of its heavily biased, opinionated nature, and the fact that sometimes the descriptions give spoilers for the films they describe, which is a shame for the films that I haven't seen yet. Rather, if I see a frame I'm really interested in, I'll briefly read the text for some basic information, and then go to the IMDB (Internet Movie Database) for a more objective view of the filmmaker's work.

Anyways, don't get this book if you really want "a concise guide to the art of 250 filmmakers;" *do* get this book if you just want to flip through the pages and see some of the most beautiful images you've ever laid your eyes on, and find out about some amazing directors you may have never heard of. Just make sure you take the author's opinions with a very big grain of salt. ...more

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The Moviegoer
by Walker Percy

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I didn't get everything there was to learn from this book on my first read. The plot itself isn't complex, but the observations and thoughts of the main character are. This is the kind of book in which I can turn to any random page and have something ...more

Atul rated a book it was amazing

Interpreter of Maladies
by Jhumpa Lahiri

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I'm a native-born American citizen with Indian (immigrant) parents, and I've rarely felt particularly "Indian", as my parents raised me without telling me much about my cultural heritage. The little they did tell me about Indian culture regarded how I'm a native-born American citizen with Indian (immigrant) parents, and I've rarely felt particularly "Indian", as my parents raised me without telling me much about my cultural heritage. The little they did tell me about Indian culture regarded how silly they thought some of its customs were, such as arranged marriage and religious fasting.
I found this book incredibly interesting. I've read very little fiction about India, so I don't know how these stories compare to the rest of what's out there, but I loved every one of them. They gave me an immense amount of respect for my heritage, from its broad ideals to its intricate details. They also provided me with a viewpoint that I could easily relate to, since most of the main characters were Americans or Indians who had spent all or much of their life in America.

In particular, I was fascinated by the way the author depicts things that are normally seen by Western culture as backwards and oppressive. For instance, her portrayal of arranged marriage is interesting because it's not presented as something inferior to the American model of courtship and love, but as an alternative. I found that many of the stories in this book challenge the Western conceptions of "soulmates" and "finding the perfect match" by suggesting that an individual can love almost anyone romantically and unconditionally and can happily live with them for the rest of their days, as long as they are willing to put effort into the relationship and treat the other person with respect and understanding. Lahiri's stories are full of cultural juxtapositions that are catalysts for such ruminations, although they're often very subtle (I'm sure I missed a ton of them) so it's usually up to the reader to make the connections. Which I don't have a problem with, because it means I can read her stories over and over and keep finding new things in them.

Unlike many other short stories I've encountered, most of the stories in this book didn't have some kind of "surprise plot twist". In fact, most short stories I've read are more like full-length novels compressed into 20 or 30 pages: they have an exposition, rising action, climax, resolution, and a lot of action takes place in them. Lahiri's stories aren't like this at all; they're more like portraits that change over time. I mean, a single day in anyone's life is a story, and a very interesting one: not because all kinds of events and plot twists happen, but because of everything else. Lahiri focuses on everything else.

A still-frame portrait takes a single, uneventful instant in someone's life and makes it beautiful. Similarly, Lahiri's short stories take a few relatively uneventful days, weeks, or months in an ordinary person's life and make them seem extraordinary. Without being trite, contrived, or corny. I don't know how she accomplishes this, but I'm envious. ...more