Some interesting ideas here, but the book is pretty scattershot overall. The real takeaway is "try things and keep good enough records to measure if they work".
Reviews and Comments
He/Him. In the USA... for now. Mastodon
I only track books that I read for pleasure, mostly SF/Fantasy. I've fallen out of the habit of actually writing reviews beyond giving a star rating. It would be nice to get back into that habit.
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Aneel reviewed The 4-Hour Body by Timothy Ferriss
The 4-Hour Body: An Uncommon Guide to Rapid Fat-Loss, Incredible Sex, and Becoming Superhuman is …
Review of 'The 4-Hour Body' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
Some interesting ideas here, but the book is pretty scattershot overall. The real takeaway is "try things and keep good enough records to measure if they work".
Aneel reviewed The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
A young adventurer joins three musketeers, in the service of Louis XIII, and becomes involved …
Review of 'The Three Musketeers' on 'Goodreads'
2 stars
I was a bit disappointed by this. Perhaps I'd hoped for too much from a classic of the genre. There was some good swashbuckling, but the motivations of the main characters rang hollow to me.
I was a bit disappointed by this. Perhaps I'd hoped for too much from a classic of the genre. There was some good swashbuckling, but the motivations of the main characters rang hollow to me.
Aneel reviewed CryoBurn (Vorkosigan Saga, #14) by Lois McMaster Bujold
Cryoburn is a science fiction novel by American writer Lois McMaster Bujold, first published in …
Review of 'CryoBurn (Vorkosigan Saga, #14)' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
Too heavy on the kids, for my taste.
Aneel reviewed Surface Detail by Iain M. Banks (Culture, #9)
Surface Detail by Iain M. Banks is a science fiction novel in his Culture series, …
Review of 'Surface Detail' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
A solid Culture novel. Less subtle than some.
Aneel reviewed Palimpsest by Catherynne M. Valente
Palimpsest is a novel by Catherynne M. Valente, published in March 2009. It follows four …
Review of 'Palimpsest' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
After the Orphan's Tales, I had high hopes. This lacks the familiar feeling of those books. It's also weirdly protagonist-less. The main characters don't seem to have goals or much will of their own.
After the Orphan's Tales, I had high hopes. This lacks the familiar feeling of those books. It's also weirdly protagonist-less. The main characters don't seem to have goals or much will of their own.
Aneel reviewed Kraken by China Miéville
Kraken is a 2010 fantasy novel by British author China Miéville. It is published in …
Review of 'Kraken' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Great setting. Good characters. Solid plot.
Aneel reviewed Roughing it by Mark Twain
Roughing It is a book of semi-autobiographical travel literature by Mark Twain. It was written …
Review of 'Roughing it' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
There are a lot of amusing anecdotes in this, but I wish it had been about half as long.
Around the World in Eighty Days (French: Le tour du monde en quatre-vingts jours) is …
Review of 'Around the World in Eighty Days (Extraordinary Voyages, #11)' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
For a book that's ostensibly about travel, it's pretty amazing how little travel is in it.
Fun to read while on an 81 day trip around the world, though...
For a book that's ostensibly about travel, it's pretty amazing how little travel is in it.
Fun to read while on an 81 day trip around the world, though...
Aneel reviewed IN A GROVE by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa (\)
Review of 'IN A GROVE' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
Interesting multiple-perspective piece.
Aneel rated The Big Sleep: 3 stars
The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler (Philip Marlowe, #1)
Philip Marlowe, a private eye who operates in Los Angeles's seamy underside during the 1930s, takes on his first case, …
Aneel reviewed The City & the City by China Miéville
When a murdered woman is found in the city of Beszel, somewhere at the edge …
Review of 'The City & the City' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
Fascinating premise: two cities, occupying the same physical space, separated only by the willful "unseeing" by their respective inhabitants. The mystery story plot didn't really appeal to me, though.
Fascinating premise: two cities, occupying the same physical space, separated only by the willful "unseeing" by their respective inhabitants. The mystery story plot didn't really appeal to me, though.
Aneel rated Accelerando: 2 stars
Accelerando by Charles Stross
The Singularity. It is the era of the posthuman. Artificial intelligences have surpassed the limits of human intellect. Biotechnological beings …
Aneel rated The Iron Dragon's Daughter: 4 stars
Aneel reviewed Captain Blood by Rafael Sabatini
Review of 'Captain Blood' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
Entertaining swashbuckling adventure. Archetypical good-man-forced-to-piracy story. Good for reading while sitting six feet from the Caribbean.