aka @kingrat@sfba.social. I'm following a lot of bookwyrm accounts, since that seems to be the only way to get reviews from larger servers to this small server. Also, I will like & boost a lot of reviews that come across my feed. I will follow most bookwyrm accounts back if they review & comment. Social reading should be social.
This link opens in a pop-up window
Success! Phil in SF has read 31 of 28 books.
Dark Lord Davi rules the kingdom, but she must now break the time loop that binds her in this hilariously …
Dark Lord Davi rules the kingdom, but she must now break the time loop that …
Alongside all this thermaturgical heavy artillery, the presence of a simple writing desk is somewhat disconcerting.
— Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me by Django Wexler (Dark Lord Davi, #2) (78%)
goddammit. i just figured out that "thaumite" is from thaumaturgy. 78% into book 2. in my defense, I'm very pretty.
Phil in SF
boosted
USA Today bestselling author Alix E. Harrow’s A Spindle Splintered brings her patented charm to …
This was a very enjoyable listen. I didn't expect the combination of a terminally ill young woman and the fairytale of Sleeping Beauty to be so entertaining. I liked how the various versions of the story were used here. Highly recommended if you're in need of a short and entertaining fantasy tale. I'm looking forward to the next one in the series.
Phil in SF
boosted
There are only three real powers in the Spiral: the corporate power of the Trust …
I had high hopes for this one but it fell short. The characters are rather one-dimensional with often very clichéd dialogue and mannerisms. There is an attempt at world-building but it remains rather vague as to what the Guild really is and does (apparently, they're supposed to be "the good guys" but they don't come off like that at all in this book) and howit would realistically work. The villains' plan is also pretty bad and ill thought-through. There are some interesting bits but not enough for me to check out the next book in the series.
Dark Lord Davi rules the kingdom, but she must now break the time loop that …
The vitrine contraption ends here, too, with one final glass sphere hanging only a few feet above the twisting surface of the pool.
— Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me by Django Wexler (Dark Lord Davi, #2) (78%)
new vocabulary: vitrine
a glass display case
Phil in SF
boosted
This was a 3.75 for me. I did overall really like this book--it has Nagoski's signature voice (and literally, too, since I listed to the audiobook!) that feels both knowledgeable and playful, and sympathetic without being entirely cloying. I gleaned a lot of useful information from this about how to actually manage stress in ways that are lasting... and also had to acknowledge that a lot of the stuff that I choose to carry isn't really mine to worry about. It's wild hearing a phrase like "human giver syndrome" and hearing it described and going "oh, so, like, my whole personality? coooool cool cool cool." Would recommend this to anyone who constantly feels like they're drowning. It's a self-help book for sure, but backed by research and with many actionable solutions and useful examples.
I think the only part I didn't like was the bit re: body positivity, not because …
This was a 3.75 for me. I did overall really like this book--it has Nagoski's signature voice (and literally, too, since I listed to the audiobook!) that feels both knowledgeable and playful, and sympathetic without being entirely cloying. I gleaned a lot of useful information from this about how to actually manage stress in ways that are lasting... and also had to acknowledge that a lot of the stuff that I choose to carry isn't really mine to worry about. It's wild hearing a phrase like "human giver syndrome" and hearing it described and going "oh, so, like, my whole personality? coooool cool cool cool." Would recommend this to anyone who constantly feels like they're drowning. It's a self-help book for sure, but backed by research and with many actionable solutions and useful examples.
I think the only part I didn't like was the bit re: body positivity, not because it was wrong or bad, but just because I'm a fat liberationist and have Done The Reading. So that section felt like being taken back to preschool and honestly felt like it stretched on way too long. I'm sure it's helpful and useful for others! All of that was just stuff I knew already and left me bored and ready to get to the rest of it. That and having to hear "patriarchy (ugh)" with the "ugh" said aloud every time the word came up kind of made me cringe. We can use the big girl words! It's okay!!! (But also this book was published in 2019, truly A Different Time.)
One other downside: the audiobook has music clearly designed to elicit emotional reactions at points, which I did not love.
But these are very minor gripes. The centering of the human need for community and connection is, in many ways, what makes this book stand out. Absolutely worth a read, especially if you are a perpetually exhausted woman.
To trace the history of the twenty-first century so far is to trace a history …
Halfway through, and so far it's argument by anecdote. Also, so far it's just a litany of what's wrong, with little in the way of policy recommendations beyond "do more of the things you want" and "pick some goals, not all goals" and "judge by outcomes, not process". Well, tell us which goals you think we should have! Much like I think people who think we should cut budgets should recommend cutting specific programs.
Dark Lord Davi rules the kingdom, but she must now break the time loop that …
The only thing I regret, as I become the cynosure of all eyes, is that I'm not about 6 in taller.
— Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me by Django Wexler (Dark Lord Davi, #2) (58%)
new vocabulary: cynosure
a person or thing that is the center of attention or admiration
Phil in SF
boosted
From Booker Prize winner Salman Rushdie, a searing, deeply personal account of enduring—and surviving—an attempt …
Good parts are Rushdie's imaginings, mental literary meanderings, and gallows humor. Would have been fine as a long-form article, a love letter to his new wife and to aging's difficulties healing, touches only briefly on the regret of still being better known for his tragedies than for his books.
Steinbeck’s tough yet charming portrait of people on the margins of society, dependent on one …
Steinbeck's prose is so amazingly well-crafted. It's interesting without being flowery.
Phil in SF
boosted
Years after a meteorite strike obliterated Washington, D.C.—triggering an extinction-level global warming event—Earth’s survivors have …
This is the final book in the Lady Astronaut series, with Elma York landing on Mars to help establish a base. This book has the mix of space stuff, politics, relationships, and technical trouble that you would expect from the rest of series, but fundamentally, this book is about Elma learning to be a leader and it's a good capstone on her emotional and professional journey.
Unfortunately, most of the action in this book takes place off page. Early on Elma realizes people are covering something up, but that event has already happened. There's some feint that maybe more problems from Earth First terrorists could happen, but this does not materialize. And sure, there are some real consequences from the coverup, but the majority of them also happen off page. It is not as if I am reading the Lady Astronaut series for action and adventure, but it's hard not …
This is the final book in the Lady Astronaut series, with Elma York landing on Mars to help establish a base. This book has the mix of space stuff, politics, relationships, and technical trouble that you would expect from the rest of series, but fundamentally, this book is about Elma learning to be a leader and it's a good capstone on her emotional and professional journey.
Unfortunately, most of the action in this book takes place off page. Early on Elma realizes people are covering something up, but that event has already happened. There's some feint that maybe more problems from Earth First terrorists could happen, but this does not materialize. And sure, there are some real consequences from the coverup, but the majority of them also happen off page. It is not as if I am reading the Lady Astronaut series for action and adventure, but it's hard not to feel like there's a more engaging story being told next door. (To that end, I wonder if this book would have been better told from Leonard's perspective.)
One thing I do really appreciate about this book is seeing Elma and Nathaniel's relationship continuing to grow. For me, Mary Robinette Kowal's writing excels at telling a story with believably married characters who each have their own foibles and needs, and I feel like that's the case both here and in her Glamourist Histories series. It's nice to see the two of them care about each other, but also argue and disagree and be understandably frustrated with each other in a way that I don't see many books engage with.
Dark Lord Davi rules the kingdom, but she must now break the time loop that …
Wexler is quickly becoming one of my go-to authors.
Steinbeck’s tough yet charming portrait of people on the margins of society, dependent on one another for both physical and …
To trace the history of the twenty-first century so far is to trace a history …
Has a pretty good criticism of degrowth (winning elections on degrowth policies such as vegetarianism isn't likely to happen), but then transitions into a description of an energy techno-utopia that is also significantly hard to win on politically. Massive subsidies for green energy are also a pretty hard sell. Maybe they'll get to that part shortly though.
To trace the history of the twenty-first century so far is to trace a history …
This is a book that should validate a lot of my priors, so I'm going to be extra critical. So far, my two criticisms don't necessarily impact the overall thrust of the book, but the lack of rigor bothers me.
In a few paragraphs on zoning, there's only one sentence on the racist origins and long running practice of zoning.
The authors extol the benefits of cities (something I agree with) by noting how many companies are forcing people back to the office. What the text doesn't note, however, is how little evidence there is for the effectiveness of those return-to-office mandates. I personally think there's huge benefits to working together in an office, and there's evidence for lots of in-office benefits. But I haven't seen anything that specifically validates that the benefits of return-to-office outweigh the costs.
