Read – Archive
2023:
Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity – Peter Attia – 26Dec23 – 5/5
An excellent guide to identifying and preventing the various evils of the Four Horsemen: heart disease, cancer, neurodegeneration, and metabolic dysfunction. The health insurance framework that animates modern medicine concerns itself mostly with reactive treatments. “Medicine 3.0” focuses instead on interventions to buttress the patient against the inevitable pull of age. “The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining.” The goal is to increase both lifespan and healthspan—the period of life free from disability or disease. A lot of good lessons on anatomy, exercise, and genetics. I for one will be trying to eat a lot more protein and do a lot more cardio. Notes here.The Beginning of Infinity – David Deutsch – 13Nov23 – 4/5
Many profound and inspiring ideas, but also some genuinely incomprehensible passages. Came away with a deeper understanding of technology, optimism, and the preciousness of human reason. Politicians should read this book (at least the first half)—not for its criticism of electoral systems (though great), but for its perspective on innovation, the problems we face, and what truly matters. Notes here.Among the Bros – Max Marshall – 23Oct23 – 5/5
Book of the year. Plumbs the depths of a fraternity narcotics ring. Rife with salacious detail but also honest in its appraisal of fraternity culture and all its satellite injustices. True crime, investigative, page-turning gold. (I also happen to know the author.)The Testament – John Grisham – 8Aug23 – 4/5
First Grisham novel. I get the appeal. Fun read. But there were too many characters, and the ending was mediocre. Will read Grisham again.With the Old Breed – Eugene Sledge – 30Jun23 – 5/5
WW2 memoir from the Pacific theater. Totally harrowing. The author, a Marine rifleman, was the son of a doctor and later became a biology professor himself. It shows in his writing. He addresses the surreal brutality with scientific curiosity, rarely editorializing. His stories from Peleliu and Okinawa capture the highs and lows of combat, from senseless death and desecration to inspiring leadership and camaraderie. Will make you grateful for dry socks.Rocket Men – Robert Kurson – 19Jun23 – 5/5
1968 was a bad year. MLK was assassinated. RFK, a leading presidential candidate, was also assassinated. 16,000 US troops died in Vietnam. North Koreans captured and tortured the crew of the USS Pueblo. Racial tensions were at an all-time high. So were antiwar demonstrations. Amidst all this, NASA decided to sprint forward with the first mission to orbit the moon. Apollo 8 got none of the historical cachet of Apollo 11 or the Hollywood treatment of Apollo 13, but the mission was a triumph of daring and teamwork. And it all happened over Christmas! Bold. Great book.The Thursday Murder Club – Richard Osman – 16May23 – 3/5
Office book club selection. British mystery novel that takes place in a retirement community. Almost obnoxiously charming and clever. Not really my bag, but kinda fun.Beyond the Grave – Jeffrey Condon, Esq. – 13May23 – 4/5
Book about estate planning. Good. Very detailed.Lincoln on Leadership – Donald T. Phillips – 3Apr23 – 3/5
Office book club selection. Discusses nuggets of Lincoln’s leadership style then connects it today’s fast-paced and challenging business environment. A little too on the nose for my liking. Has some good tidbits about Lincoln, though: tallest president, never swore, issued more pardons than any other president, spent a ton of time outside the White House, almost didn’t give the Gettysburg Address because his son was sick, an infamous raconteur and “the embodiment of good temper and affability.”Dopamine Nation – Dr. Anna Lembke – 19Mar23 – 5/5
I beat myself up over screen time. I’ve long suspected I spend too much time on my instant gratification device. This book confirms my suspicions, so naturally I enjoyed it. It’s not perfectly scientific, but it isn’t spurious or far-fetched, either. The author uses lessons from hardcore addicts she’s treated to explain how pleasure and pain operate like a seesaw. If you have a nagging feeling that your behavior and attention are not entirely your own, I would recommend it. It’s short, too. Pairs well with Digital Minimalism. Notes here.The Alchemist – Paulo Coelho – 26Feb23 – 4/5
Rich enough to offer some insight from the torrent of metaphors. Short enough to avoid woowoo fatigue.The Happiness Hypothesis – Jonathan Haidt – 12Feb23 – 5/5
There’s a famous “Stanford marshmallow experiment” in which children are offered one marshmallow, but if they can wait 15 minutes, the researcher will give them another. Story goes that the kids who could delay gratification enjoyed better life outcomes, higher SAT scores, etc. It turns out the “good” kids weren’t necessarily smarter or more disciplined; they were just better at distracting themselves. This means that trite advice like “delete social media from your phone” may actually be scientifically advisable. It’s these quick and actionable insights that make this book so good. Haidt takes adages and axioms from across cultures and bridges them together, injects them with science, and extricates the real lessons. Amazing book.Linchpin – Seth Godin – 21Jan23 – 2/5
One of the worst books I’ve ever finished. 99% gobbledygook. Decent premise, but mostly boring ideas supported with asinine stories.
2022:
Hero of the Empire – Candice Millard – 31Dec22 – 5/5
Amazing story of a young Winston Churchill’s escape from South African custody during the Second Boer War around 1900. Loved the contrast between Britain’s absolute fetishization of battlefield bravery combined with their insane arrogance and tactical ineptitude. Totally fascinating, often humorous, and expertly written.Kids These Days – Malcolm Harris – 18Dec22 – 3/5
A collection of essays on the Millennial condition, loosely tied together. Some cool insights. And some good data and history to explain recent phenomena and debunk the whole “entitled snowflake” narrative, which I don’t think that many people actually believe. A drag, though. If you like to look at everything through turd-colored glasses and find arguments as to why things suck, it’s a good book. If you’re looking for solutions, this ain’t it. Also, too many long sentences.The Overstory – Richard Powers – 4Dec22 – 4/5
Novel about trees. First part was brilliant. Some of the best writing I’ve ever read. But it dragged into this weird slow sequence of somewhat interlocking narratives and reflections that felt more like an environmental treatise than a plot. Took me forever to read. Can’t deny it’s a great book, though. But it’s great like classical music is great.Boyd – Robert Coram – 28Aug22 – 5/5
Phenomenal biography. An actual page-turner. Profiles an Air Force fighter pilot turned military strategist who makes taking the Pentagon to task his ultimate calling and gets nothing but scorn in return. Doesn’t shy from his shortcomings, either. This book has become popular with entrepreneur types, and I can see why. The tension between doing something and being someone is an excellent lesson for anyone mired in careerism. Anyone remotely interested in military history should absolutely read it.The Power of Now – Eckhart Tolle – 18Jul22 – 4/5
Dense and frankly difficult read. Reminded me of the philosophy books of my undergrad yore but way more woowoo. I can’t say I “enjoyed” reading it. But I also can’t really estimate the benefit of the ideas it incepted in me. Two good ones: (1) You are not your mind nor your thoughts. Your mind is a tool that should be deployed and shut off as circumstances dictate. (2) You owe nothing to the past. Any suggestion otherwise is insanity.The Bitcoin Bride – Chris Brady – 30May22 – 4/5
An elderly Japanese gentleman came in to the office recently to get his will done. He was wearing a Bitcoin shirt. I asked him about it. He proceeded to tell me his “company” just wrote a novel about Bitcoin. He dropped off the book the next day, along with his business card. Turns out his company is probably (definitely) a pyramid scheme that seems to peddle self-improvement books. But this one was a quasi-romance novel that somehow also covers the basics of Bitcoin. It was actually quite good. I learned some stuff I didn’t know. I guess if the universe gives you a book, read it.The Happiness Advantage – Shawn Achor – 8May22 – 5/5
An excellent book not for the ingenuity of its ideas (though good) but for the perfectly succinct and compelling way it presents them. Effective use of science, anecdote, culture, humor. Happiness is a competitive advantage and is trainable. Success follows happiness, not vice-versa.Four Thousand Weeks – Oliver Burkeman – 12Apr22 – 4/5
Pretty amazing book that turns a lot of productivity advice on its head. (Four thousand weeks = roughly the average life.) Spotty writing, though. Sometimes he would make a perfect point in the middle of a paragraph then belabor it for half a page. Coolest ideas: (1) We don’t have a limited amount of time; we are a limited amount of time. (2) You are your attention. More attention = more time. (3) True hobbies are subversive because they don’t contribute to instrumentalist fulfillment. That’s why it’s maybe preferable to be mediocre at a hobby. (4) Originality lies on the far side of unoriginality.A Short History of Nearly Everything – Bill Bryson – 26Mar22 – 4/5
Quite an accomplishment of a book. An efficient and humorous primer on every scientific field. So many fun facts. Here are three favorites: (1) DNA is not a machine for reproducing you. You are a machine for reproducing DNA. (2) Yellowstone National Park is, in a literal sense, an enormous supervolcano. The magma chamber below the surface is 45 miles across and 8 miles thick. It has erupted before and likely will again. (3) The first International Cloud Atlas divided clouds into ten types. “The plumpest and most cushiony-looking was number nine, cumulonimbus. That seems to have been the source of the expression ‘to be on cloud nine.’”The Unbearable Lightness of Being – Milan Kundera – 5Feb22 – 5/5
Cool book. Takes a philosophical idea in its hands and wrestles with it like a ball of clay via different character studies. Some parts lost me, but the good was very good.Indistractable – Nir Eyal – 14Jan22 – 3/5
Meh. Some good stuff about working with technology rather than against it. But kind of a generic-brand Atomic Habits.
2021:
Quit Like a Millionaire – Kristy Shen – 2Jan21 – 5/5
Court-Martial at Parris Island – John Stevens – 18Jan21 – 4/5
The Psychology of Money – Morgan Housel – 27Jan21 – 4/5
Man’s Search for Meaning – Viktor Frankl – 5Feb21 – 5/5
Under the Banner of Heaven – Jon Krakauer – 16Jul21 – 4/5
Show Your Work! – Austin Kleon – 7Aug21 – 2/5
Norwegian Wood – Haruki Murakami – 18Oct21 – 4/5
Rich Dad Poor Dad – Robert Kiyosaki – 4Nov21 – 4/5
Good ideas on making money work for you. Corporations pay less taxes because they can expense so much. Buy low. Profits are made when you buy, not when you sell. A lot of braggadocious stories. Don't be chicken little. Very little practical advice.Arnold: The Education of a Bodybuilder – Arnold Schwarzenegger – 14Nov21 – 4/5
Back half or so is just exercise advice. I guess sometimes I complain about books not having enough practical advice, but this book has way too much. The first half is very interesting and funny and inspiring.Tools of Titans – Tim Ferriss – 24Dec21 – 5/5
Yes, I read it cover to cover like a psychopath. It was great. More than anything, it gave me a whole new trove of stuff I want to read and watch and listen to. Highly recommend.The Checklist Manifesto – Atul Gawande – 31Dec21 – 4/5
Cool read. Great writing. Persuasive arguments for using checklists for any complicated and collaborative tasks. Focused a bit too much on the medical field for my taste. 4/5.