User Profile

Tania

Tania@bookwyrm.social

Joined 1 year, 2 months ago

data science researcher, ex software deveveloper, pole dancer, bibliophile, interested in machine learning, comp neuroscience, sociology. I read a bit of (almost) everything. 🇸🇬🇦🇺🇩🇪

This link opens in a pop-up window

Tania's books

View all books

User Activity

The Ministry for the Future (Paperback, 2021, Orbit) 3 stars

Established in 2025, the purpose of the new organization was simple: To advocate for the …

Good ideas, poorly executed

3 stars

After a strong start in the first few chapters I was struggling to get through the rest. The writing was plain and disjointed, the plot and characters thin, and it often read more like journalism, some climate change manifesto or a physics lecture, rather than fiction.

All the Light We Cannot See (Hardcover, 2014, Scribner) 5 stars

From the highly acclaimed, multiple award-winning Anthony Doerr, a stunningly ambitious and beautiful novel about …

A masterpiece

5 stars

This was so well written. I love Doerr's beautiful descriptive style and the way he interweaves the stories of the characters intricately together.

Minus half a star because it didn't make me shed as many tears as such a powerful story should have. I can't really tell why. Maybe it was just my mood and I may need to reread it sometime and update my rating o 5 stars. Its definitely worth a read and a reread in any case.

reviewed Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami

Norwegian Wood (Paperback, 2015, Vintage International) 4 stars

Toru, a quiet and preternaturally serious young college student in Tokyo, is devoted to Naoko, …

A hauntingly beautiful masterpiece

5 stars

I love Murakami's writing style - his descriptions, symbolism, the philosophical dialogs, the way he handles serious themes (existence, innocence, love, death) and his jazz and literary references. There was only one character in the book that annoyed me somewhat. I want to blame it on Murakami's lack of first-hand experience with the sort of problems the character had, but maybe its my own. All his other characters were perfect in their imperfections and totally relatable. The story itself was hauntingly beautiful.

How Minds Change (Hardcover, 2022, Portfolio) 4 stars

Enjoyable and insightful

4 stars

I didn't start with high expectations for this book but was pleasantly surprised. It was very insightful and clearly written - a mix of interesting conversations, humane stories and individual journeys, as well as some social science, psychology and neuroscience theory and research. I really enjoyed reading it. Now I need to give McRaney's podcast a second chance.

Dr. No (2022, Graywolf Press) 3 stars

The protagonist of Percival Everett’s puckish new novel is a brilliant professor of mathematics who …

Too absurd

3 stars

Nice premise and reasonably entertaining at the start. Clever word play throughout but generally a little too absurd and lacking a proper plot. I got bored somewhere in the middle - not really my cup of tea.

A Psalm for the Wild-Built (EBook, 2021, Tom Doherty Associates) 4 stars

It’s been centuries since the robots of Panga gained self-awareness and laid down their tools; …

Heart-warming utopian future

4 stars

Utopian futures are not usually my thing (dystopia any day), but this was thoughtfully crafted and heart-warmimg so I enjoyed it. The only thing that bothered me a little was the gender pronoun usage. The main character is referred to as "they" throughout, which of course is fine but a little distracting for me.

Klara and the Sun (Hardcover, 2021, Faber & Faber) 4 stars

From her place in the store, Klara, an Artificial Friend with outstanding observational qualities, watches …

Exploring love and loneliness through an AI

4 stars

An easy and enjoyable read despite some illogical parts. I like the idea of exploring such human concepts as love and loneliness through an artificially intelligent robot.

The Luminaries (2013, Granta, Granta Books) 5 stars

It is 1866, and Walter Moody has come to make his fortune upon the West …

Masterful

5 stars

The writing style captured me from the beginning, although it was sometimes (in the first few sections) a struggle to follow the rather complex plot with so many characters. I really appreciated all the authentic New Zealand (and especially Hokitika) references - wildlife, Maori language and culture, street names, etc. since I discovered and started reading this book in Hokitika itself. However, I think many clever astrological references were lost on me. Despite that I thoroughly enjoyed the book. This would be a great one to take apart in an English Lit. class.