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Short Book Review: Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari

SBR: I once jokingly summarized Sapiens by saying that we fu**ed up wherever we went and we take ourselves too seriously. Or perhaps I wasn’t joking at all. That’s what it says. But the beauty of the book is that it is accessible and easy to read. The author has not tried to attempt writing in a way that will pass scholarly muster. And that may make you uncomfortable where he is talking about things you may have in-depth knowledge of (for example it wasn’t satisfying for patriarchy to be declared universal without even a mention of matriarchal societies we do know of and any attempt to understand why they were different). But one book can’t be everything to everybody. And what this book is, makes it worth a read. But beware. If you are devoted to the idea of a meaningful life, this book may annoy you, or in the worst case even depress you. Human life has no meaning, the book declares blithely (and I agree). The author still seems to find some solace in Buddhism (which I don’t!).

To read or not to read: Yes.

Dragons, AI and the Nobel @ BYOB Party in November 2017 (Part 7)

Ravi talked about Eldest by Christopher Paolini, the second book in the four-book series The Inheritance Cycle. The story is a mature fantasy based on the adventures of Eragon and his dragon Saphira. Other fantasies that were mentioned were the Kingkiller Chronicle, a fantasy series by Patrick Rothfuss and The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan.

Bhargavi spoke about how Homo Deus was the most depressing book she had ever read. While Yuval Harari’s Sapiens is a mega-favorite, this book chronicles an eerie future for the human race, a future where Artificial Intelligence will pull strings and shove humans off of the pedestal they have lurched themselves precariously on. If you are in the mood for some science fiction reading, you may want to try reading Asimov’s short story.

The 2017 Nobel Prize for literature went to Kazuo Ishiguro and what better way to end the year then a mention of his book, Remains of the Day, a book that Ishiguro wrote in four weeks! The story is written in the perspective of a butler. The narrative contains diary entries and the story veers on the relationship that Stevens shares with Miss Kenton, the housekeeper. The book won the Man Booker Prize for Fiction in 1989 and was adapted into a Hollywood film that was nominated for eight Academy Awards. Piya spoke about how enamored she was by the way Ishiguro would make the reader arrive at the place he wanted them to arrive at, no mean feat and the sign of a skilled craftsman.

And with that we end our round-up of books for 2017!

Lemon Cake, PCs and Comics @ BYOB Party in November 2017 (Part 6)

Piya mentioned in passing how impressed she was by Vivek Shanbhag’s book Ghachar Ghochar but the book she wanted us to have a taste of was The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender. This modern fairytale food literature has a nine-year-old girl as the protagonist. She has a gift- she can read the emotions of the people who cook the dishes she eats. One day, she is surprised to taste despair in her mother’s lemon cake- a cake she loves deeply. She spits out the cake out – she cannot comprehend her mother’s feelings. As she grows up, she tries to hide this talent and lives on packaged food- to save herself from the consequences of flashbacks. In parallel, family skeletons tumble out and she realizes the problems that her family really faced. The story ends on a positive note. Rose Edelstein becomes a food quality tester. On the whole, Piya found the book to be a fun read replete with recipes and a pinch of family drama.

If fiction is not your cup of tea and you are looking for some company history, Commodore: A Company on the Edge is a good bet. Sudharsan enlightened us about how once upon a time in pre-Apple days, the proverbial Garden of Eden had one prominent PC company. Brian Bagnall talks about the how the company grew and is the case with most success stories that turn failures how the core team destroyed pretty much everyone who created value for the company.

Akshay Arora quite enjoyed The Shape of Ideas: An Illustrated Exploration of Creativity by the genius illustrator Grant Snider, dentist turned artist. His comics are fun to read and philosophical at times. “The book looks like a children’s book,” Akshay said, “But it’s far from it. Every panel is different and sometimes poetic, sometimes funny. I haven’t been able to convince my friends about the value of this book which is why I got it here.” It was the first time that a reader read out portions of a comic strip. Here are some of the comics that Akshay mentioned: Opportunity Knocks, Theories of Disappointment, and Nothing.

You can read Snider’s interview here.

More books in Part 7.

Self-help, Philosophy and Habit @ BYOB Party in November 2017 (Part 5)

The debate about whether to read self-help books or not continues. Somnath spoke about how the book Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson has inspired him so much that he reads it every day before going to work. This business parable features four mice: Sniff, Scurry, Hem and Haw, each of which have human traits that affect their performance. Somanath believes that there is always room for improvement and self-help books can aid this process; however, many of the techies in the room couldn’t see eye to eye with self-help literature.

Sreeja got a self-help book too called The Power of Your Subconscious Mind by Dr. Joseph Murphy. This bestseller book is eye-opening, Sreeja says, and she follows affirmation techniques that Murphy has prescribed. “It works,” Sreeja affirmed.

Deepak talked about how the non-fiction book that really got him started on reading was Homo Sapiens by Yuval Hariri. However, he spoke about a different book- A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy by William B. Irvine- a book about philosophy, particularly the stoicism of ancient Rome. Irvine uses the lessons he has learned from this ancient

philosophy to provide clarity for those who deal with dissatisfaction. He talks about how people can control their anger, minimise their distress and use awareness to lead fruitful lives.

Tanay got a popular book called Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig. This road trip philosophy is also a must read if you intend to take up motorcycle travel. “The book is a treasure trove of quotes,” Tanay said. This bestseller tells the story of a motorcycle trip by a father and son. The motorcycle works brilliantly as a metaphor as well.

Mukesh picked up The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg, Pulitzer Prize-winning business reporter. This heavily researched book explains the significance of habit formation and how individuals and business benefit from creating positive habits. Habit formation is an integral part of living in a community and organizational culture. Duhigg delves into many spaces, including advertising, customer service and the Civil Rights Movement. Habits can be changed, manipulated and created- Duhigg explains how.

More books in Part 6.

Bring Your Own Book (BYOB) Party on Jan 20, 2018 (Saturday) @ IISc, Bengaluru

BYOB Party is back and this time it’s at IISc, Bengaluru!

Have you read a book that you are craving to chitchat about with someone? Have a favorite book that you think everyone would love, if only they knew about it? Want to see what others are reading and have interesting conversations beyond weather, traffic, and real estate?

Then come to the BYOB party on January 20th and talk away! Try to avoid a bestseller and if you have a copy, bring it along and read us a passage. All languages are welcome. This time, there is a raffle prize for those who talk about poetry books – the winner takes a book home!

There will be refreshment and swags courtesy Worth A Read.

Venue: Near Choksi Hall, IISc, Bengaluru

FAQs

So, what really happens at a BYOB Party?

Everyone brings a book and talks about it. Conversations follow and they are good. So are the refreshments!

You can take a look at what happened in some of our earlier parties here:

Do I have to be there for the entire duration of four hours?

We aren’t closing doors or locking you in. But the party is best enjoyed if you are there for the entire duration and listen to people talk about a variety of books. Trust us, you won’t know how time flew.

Do I have to bring anything?

Nothing really. But if you have a copy of the book you want to talk about, you might want to bring it in. Other attendees might want to have a look, or you might want to read a paragraph from it.

I am an author. Can I bring a book written by me?

A good writer should be a voracious reader. It would be preferable if you brought a book you really like written by someone else.

Who are the organizers?

Hosted by Worth a Read.

Co-hosted by The Poetry & Storytelling Team at IISc and Ranade Library.

I have more questions. Who do I contact?

Shoot an e-mail to jayajha@instascribe.com.

Okay! I am ready to come. What do I do?

Join our meetup group, RSVP, and come over!

If you are not on meetup, you can also RSVP on Explara.

Trading @ BYOB Party in November 2017 (Part 4)

What’s unique about the BYOB Parties we hold is the variety of books that we come across. For instance, Rahul and Anand both got books on trading, something that is absolutely Greek to me.

Rahul got a book called Flash Boys where Michael Lewis tells the story of high-frequency trading firms. I looked up the wiki to understand what this phenomenon is: “In financial markets, high-frequency trading (HFT) is a type of algorithmic trading characterized by high speeds, high turnover rates, and high order-to-trade ratios that leverages high-frequency financial data and electronic trading tools.” Rahul simplified this definition and threw light on the reality that this kind of trading is still in early days and quite actively practiced in Bangalore and Gurgaon.

Anand spoke about a book called Trading for a Living: Psychology, Trading Tactics, Money Management by Dr. Alexander Elder, a doctor who failed several times before becoming a full-time trader. Elder talks about the three Ms- Mind, Method and Money. An understanding of psychology is an integral part of making the right observations, finding the right entry and exit points and making profits.

More books in Part 5.

Mother and Daughter Writers and the Chola Empire @ BYOB Party in November 2017 (Part 3)

What’s wrong with Indian books written in English? There was a lot of discussion about how some writers do not pay enough respect to the language and how many publishers do not take enough effort to create good standards.

Anita Desai, however, is a writer who does not fall into this bracket at all. Sunny spoke about a classic by her called The Village by the Sea. The narrative is set in a village called Thul, some time in the 1980s and tells the tale of one family in particular. Desai visited this village long enough for her to be known as a regular. “This story doesn’t have a strong beginning, middle and end,” he said. “It just happens.”

Kasturi spoke about a book by Anita Desai’s daughter, Kiran Desai who won the Booker Prize. She was rereading The Inheritance of Loss and after a good six years, her perspective of the book has changed. The story is set in Kalimpong at the foot of Mount Kanchenjunga in the Himalayas. A retired judge returns here and must face the demons he thought he had left behind. Desai deals with geography, history and characterization in a stylized way. It is slow-paced compared to the crime thrillers that were discussed at the party but it was delightful, a distinct Indian voice.

Anshuman is a history buff and was pleasantly surprised by Devi Yeshodharan’s Empire that tells the little-known story of the Chola Empire, a South Indian kingdom that held sway over South East Asia at one time. The story is told through the eyes of a Greek protagonist, a young woman. Other prominent works of historical fiction in India include the Ibis Trilogy by Amitav Ghosh. There were some mentions of books by Ashwin Sanghvi and Amish Tripathi as well.

Suspect X and Miniaturist Art @ BYOB Party in November 2017 (Part 2)

There was a crime thriller edge to the BYOB Party this time. Kshitija spoke about a unique crime thriller called The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino. The reason for its uniqueness is that the book is no conventional whodunit and the thrill lies in the power play of human psychology. The storyline is uncomplicated and even though the book is a translation from Japanese, Kshitija enjoyed the writing style. Here’s an interview with the translator Alexander O’Smith if you want to understand more about the how this novel was translated.

The story throws light on the little details of day-to-day life in Japan. Yasuko Hanoaka is a divorced single mother who lives with her daughter. Her abusive ex-husband shows up one day and ends up being killed. Detective Kusanagi suspects Yasuko but needs Professor Galileo’s help to find the culprit. The ending is wowing and Kshitija spoke in breathless excitement about the cleverness of the title. This is one psychological crime thriller you do not want to miss out on.

Aditi also got her hands on a unique literary historical crime thriller by Orhan Pamuk called My Name is Red. This book is a translation as well. Pamuk meshes love, crime and art with sixteenth-century Turkey as the backdrop. One of the miniature artists commissioned by the Sultan to create a book of his glories has disappeared. What makes the book unique besides its ambitious plotline is the fact that the point of view changes from chapter to chapter and requires a great deal of staying power to finish and do justice to as a reader. If you stick with it, this is a book that is hard to forget.

Here’s a link to an interview with Orhan Pamuk where we look at the author who brings life to Turkey’s past, present and future, using the Bosphorus river as the setting for his imagination.

Doom and Obscurity @ BYOB Party in November 2017 (Part 1)

The BYOB Paty session was kicked off with a book called Masters of Doom by David Kushner. Doom and Quake were successful gaming franchises that John Carmack and John Romero, two gaming mavericks, had created. The book outlines the stories behind these creators and the pre-gaming days when computer games were not considered art forms. It was the founders of Doom who pioneered the parallel scrolling method in computers that have changed the interface of games from what it used to be. Akshay enjoyed listening to the book. He recommends audiobooks as they are great when it comes to avoiding the screen and doing automatic chores at once. “It takes a bit of practice but listening to an audiobook can actually take out the monotony of daily tasks,” he said.

Varun wasn’t so sure about Stoner by John Williams. The story seemed pedestrian in potential as he already knew that it was the story of an ordinary guy with a boring life who died in the end. But what he didn’t expect was the way the sentences flowed. William has a very pared-down style of writing. “Everything is stripped down to its bare basics,” Varun said, “The book is so beautiful it’s hard to describe. What you are left with is the feeling that all lonely people live lives full of significance and sorrows too. The book strangely does not leave you feeling sad. You only feel satisfied.”

The book had been forgotten almost but after a French translation caught on, it revived in 2013 suddenly, forty-eight years after the author’s death- a classic case of the obscure author getting the fame he deserves posthumously.

Bring Your Own Book (BYOB) Party on November 11, 2016

RSVP on Meetup OR RSVP on Explara

Have you read a book that you are craving to chitchat about with someone? Have a favorite book that you think everyone would love, if only they knew about it? Want to see what others are reading and have interesting conversations beyond weather, traffic, and real estate?

Then come to the BYOB party and talk away! Try to avoid a bestseller and if you have a copy, bring it along and read us a passage. All languages are welcome.

There will be refreshments and swags courtesy Worth A Read.

Venue: Pothi.com, #634 (Ground Floor), 5th Main, Indiranagar 2nd Stage, Bangalore – 560038

FAQs