The Gods Themselves

The Gods Themselves 

by Isaac Asimov
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"Against stupidity the very gods themselves contend in vain." -- Friedrich Schiller

Told in three parts, this novel features a society where scientific findings are controlled by politics and human vanity. Each of the narrators, a different one in each part, is well drawn as an individual and a full picture of what is happening develops as the narratives build on each other. Overall an excellent novel!

This book is on my Classics Club list. 

Reading Plans 2025

These are my goals for my reading life in 2025:

• Read 11 books from my Classics Club list so I stay on track to complete 50 books within 5 years. 
• Participate in #ReadingAusten2025, including hosting Mansfield Park
  
• Participate in Nick's Chapter-a-Day Readalongs of Roots and Lonesome Dove
• Read at least 4 books from my Readers' Advisory Reading List. 
• Read at least 4 books from my Nonfiction November TBR list.
• Read one book for my Century of Books project. I have 3 years left to cover: 1901, 1903, and 1909. 
• Get my owned-but-not-read shelf down to fewer than 100 books. It is currently at 135 titles, but I have a pile of new books that haven't been integrated yet. I need to both read from this shelf and stop adding to it.
• Read a total of 100 books (my usual GoodReads goal).
• Continue posting a Book Report the first week of each month.

During 2024 I read a lot (27,932 pages according to GoodReads) but I wasn't reading for the various challenges I had signed up for. In 2025 I am going to skip most of my usual reading challenges and just see how things go. I do want to focus on reading through some of the book lists I have made in recent years. 

December Book Report

Lincoln, NH, December 2024

I finished 13 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

“The less we cement ourselves to our certainties, the fuller our lives can be.”
― Kim Fay, Love & Saffron

Here are the books I finished in December 2024: 

1. Rainbow's End by Martha Grimes (3-stars)
2. Retirement Reboot by Mark Miller  (3-stars)
3. Start with Why by Simon Sinek (3-stars)
4. The Postscript Murders by Ellie Griffiths (4-stars)
5. Three Act Tragedy by Agatha Christie (4-stars)
6. Mastering AI by Jeremy Kahn (5-stars)
7. What Time the Sexton's Spade Doth Rust by Alan Bradley (3-stars)
8. Love & Saffron by Kim Fay (4-stars)
9. Eggs in Purgatory by Laura Childs (audiobook, 3-stars)
10. Revenge of the Wrought Iron Flamingos by Donna Andrews (3-stars)
11. All Fishermen are Liars by John Gierach (4-stars)
12. The Life Brief by Bonnie Wan (4-stars)
13. Farewell My Lovely by Raymond Chandler (4-stars)

I finished up 2024 without making my annual goal of 100 books read. I was very close (96) and in the last few years I have read more than 100 books annually so I am giving myself a break. Overall this was not a great year for meeting reading goals. I did read a lot of good books though, so that's a win.

Mastering AI

Mastering AI: A Survival Guide to Our Superpowered Future 

by Jeremy Kahn
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

"Too often we mistakenly view technological development as deterministic, as if technology were a force of nature immune to our actions. This attitude robs us of agency and turns us into mere subjects. It is a dehumanizing pose, for one of our defining characteristics as a species is our ability to bend the world to our favor. And AI is bendable. It is a protean technology. We can still sculpt its final form. The decisions we make, individually and collectively, over the next few years will determine AI's fate, and our own. If we do nothing, humanity is careening toward a cliff edge; the fall may not doom us all, but it will injure us in countless ways We can act now to avoid the precipice and steer toward a brighter future that AI will help deliver. In trying to pull off this maneuver, our greatest impediment is not AI. It's us." (p. 245-6)

This book is both terrifying and encouraging. Kahn looks at how AI is developing, what it actually is and can do right now, and what it could become (good and bad). I found the deep dives into specific areas where AI is being developed, such as education, especially fascinating. Kahn is not giving us an objective view of AI, he has a very definite message about the dangers it poses and the opportunities it offers if we (both individually and as a species) can harness this technology instead of letting it harness us. 

I rarely feel like any book is one "everyone should read," but this one is an exception.

November Book Report

Stillwater, OK, November 2024

I finished 4 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

“A dog will wag and lick your face and just about knock the door down waiting for you to come in at the end of the day. But are they really thrilled? Or are they running the world’s longest con, a scheme developed over thousands of generations for better chow and a warm place to sleep?”
― Tommy Tomlinson, Dogland

I finished 1 book from my Classics Club list, which was on my owed-but-not-read shelf (currently at 135 books). 

 Here are the books I finished in November 2024: 

1. Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome (4-stars)
2. Dogland: Passion, Glory, and Lots of Slobber at the Westminster Dog Show by Tommy Tomlinson  (4-stars)
3. The Year of Less by Kate Flanders (audio, 3-stars)
4. Earthly Remains by Donna Leon (audio, 3-stars)

Not a big month for reading. I have some solid reading time planned in December which I am looking forward to.

NonFiction November 2024 - Week 2

Week 2 of Nonfiction November is hosted at Volatile Rune. Technically week two ended on 11/8, but I am ignoring that fact and posting about it anyway. 

Before I answer the prompt I encourage you to go read the host post at Volatile Rule which talks about the freedom to read. I totally agree with what Frances has to say. It is an important message we should all be thinking about. Please read it.

Q: What are you looking for when you pick up a nonfiction book? 

A: When I pick up a book I am looking for good writing that fits the subject matter; to learn something I didn't know, or think about something in a new way; and to enjoy the reading experience. I'm looking for these same things regardless of fiction or nonfiction.

Q: Do you have a particular topic you’re attracted to? 

A: There are some topics that consistently appeal to me: biography (esp. of writers and powerful women), personal finance, organization and project management, history of specific things (bananas, board games, brewing, etc.). Almost anything might jump out at me from the library shelves though and pique my interest. 

Q: Do you have a particular writing style that works best? 

A: The writing needs to match the topic--a light airy tone is great for a memoir about doing everything Oprah suggests for a year, but a serious, scholarly tone is called for with a history of Islam. 

Q: When you look at a nonfiction book, does the title or cover influence you? If so, share a title or cover which you find striking.

A: I don't think covers have a big influence on my book choices. 

October Book Report

Portland, ME, October 2024

I finished 7 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

““I once attempted to flirt with her our freshman year of college, complimenting her sandals before class. She didn't respond, just glared at me with a scowl that would've liquefied helium, for which I repaid her many years later by marrying into her family and sitting next to her every Thanksgiving.”" ― Harrison Scott Key, How to Stay Married

I made no progress on any of my various goals or challenges. 

 Here are the books I finished in October 2024: 

1. Lethal Treasure by Jane Cleland (3-stars)
2. How to Stay Married: The Most Insane Love Story Ever Told by Harrison Scott Key  (4-stars)
3. The Productivity Project by Chris Bailey (4-stars)
4. Murder on the Half Shelf by Lorna Barrett (3-stars)
5. The Five Years Before You Retire by Emily Guy Birkin (3-stars)
6. Georgia by Dawn Tripp (5-stars)
7. Not That Fancy by Reba McEntire (3-stars)

Three Men in a Boat To Say Nothing of the Dog

Three Men in a Boat 

by Jerome K. Jerome
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I found this book very funny. It is the thoughts of one man, J. who embarks on a boat trip on the Thames with two friends and a dog named Montmorency. The events of their journey are described and various other stories are told (like the signing of the Magna Carta) when something on the trip reminds J. of them. There is also life advice sprinkled throughout the story.

"Throw the lumber over, man! Let your boat of life be light, packed with only what you need--a homely home and simple pleasures, one or two friends, worth the name, someone to love and someone to love you, a cat, a dog, and a pipe or two, enough to eat and enough to wear, and a little more than enough to drink; for thirst is a dangerous thing." 

This novel was first published in 1899, the same year as Dom Casmurro and 2 years after Dracula. It felt more modern than that--the tone was very similar to P. G. Wodehouse (1881-1975) or John Mortimer (1923-2009).  It had summary notes at the head of each chapter--in the style of Henry Fielding--which I find entertaining. 

This book is from my Classics Club list and was my spin title. 

NonFiction November 2024 - Week 1

This first week of NonFiction November is being hosted at Based on a True Story. This week's questions are what NF have we read this year and what were our favorites?

I have read 78 books so far this year and 30 of them were nonfiction. Mostly I read books about productivity, a little history, and some memoir/biography. 

As far as favorites these were the standouts:

Congratulations! The Best is Over by R. Eric Thomas -- funny and touching memoir and the audiobook, read by the author, was great.

The Life List by Kate Christie -- a woman of "a certain age" taking control of her own destiny and nailing it!

All it Takes is a Goal by Jon Acuff -- sensible, practical tools for getting stuff done.

Boom Town by Sam Anderson -- a true story of Oklahoma City and basketball.

As always, I hope to discover some new-to-me NF titles and learn more about ones I might have been considering that are not likely to be good picks for me.