Mike > Recent Status Updates

As a mandated collegiate reading this textbook is good. I wouldn't read it for pleasure, as it lacks any poetry or pleasurable prose, but it's alright for my masters program.

Slow start, but provides a solid closed room puzzle to solve.

Entertaining. So far most of it is an autobiography, explanations of his experience with panic attacks, ambition, work, and addiction. I like his honesty and comedic delivery.

A classic horror descent into madness, seasoned with practical science fiction and philosophical themes, all pulled together with solid atmospheric prose.

This is the most dry textbook of my masters program thus far. There is absolutely no prose, poetry, or personality to engage the reader. Grammatically, the sentences contain too much information, making it difficult to retain the information after the reading is completed. When someone uses "textbooky" as a derogatory term this is what they mean.

The storyline skips around between the current, the past, and dreams the characters experience. Feels more like poetry than a novel.

My heart hurts for Malcom, and for Muhammad. Muhammad was only 22 when he became the heavyweight champion, surrounded by the lying murderers in Elijah Muhammad Nation of Islam, who Malcom unknowingly introduced Mohammad to before they decided to assassinate him.

This almost feels like it should be a nonsensical comedy, with the praying to Ford and "orgie porgie", but the delivery is serious, which robs it of a comedic delivery.

Learning more about Elijah Muhammads betrayal of Malcom X is heart wrenching. I read his autobiography, which is from Malcolm's perspective. This includes what the FBI heard Elijah said behind his back, which was disgustingly cruel.

I am so excited returning to this. At once an exploration of the history of American boxing and The American Civil Rights Movement, it refuses to shy away from the crimes against humanity inflicted upon Black America, and the men who refused to stand idly by. I waited for two others to finish before I could check it out from the library again. Now I'm chomping at the bit to finish.

Not sure if I like it. The themes outweigh the plot and characters by a landslide. The themes are excellent, but if I don't connect with the characters, and the plot barely moves, it's boring.

Last night I thought I'd read a few pages before bed. Three hours later I told myself I need to stop reading in order to get up on time. This is the most exciting book I've read since Inferno.

The first two chapters are a well written info dump. The story hasn't started yet, but I was introduced to the world & its morality. His misuse of categorical imperative annoyed me since this is a philosophical novel. So far it's interesting, but not as engaging as the hype had led me to believe it would be.

Thomas Hobbes, Benedict de Spinoza, James Boswell, David Hume, Percy Shelley, John Stuart Mill, George Elliot, Charles Darwin, Leslie Stephen, Mark Twain, Joseph Conrad, Thomas Hardy; so many excellent essays by excellent authors all compiled into one book.

Hitchens made me laugh out loud more than once from the shock of the non-sequiturs he reviews in the introduction. His unique wit always brings a smile to my face. I also enjoyed returning to writing of Lucretius, the first essay, which I had not read in seven years. The poetry of Omar Khayyam which followed is beautiful. I'll have to find more of his poetry to read.

Continuing where Dawkins left off in his first memoir "An Appetite For Wonder", he offers more fascinating scientific thoughts and entertaining stories on his journey through life.

Content is alright, but I strongly dislike the formatting. A basic Kindle format is easier to navigate and easier to read. It's annoying when the page of the book does not fit the screen, and scrolling to the bottom sometimes reveals a turn the page arrow, and sometimes does not. When studying, this wastes precious time.