Tuesday, December 1, 2015

November Books

Pretty eclectic mix this month; hip hop history, teen angst, behavioural economics; Indian poverty; 19th century drama; and meditation.

The Rap Year Book: The Most Important Rap Song From Every Year Since 1979, Discussed, Debated, and DeconstructedThe Rap Year Book: The Most Important Rap Song From Every Year Since 1979, Discussed, Debated, and Deconstructed

More than even I needed to know about hip hop, but captures each moment perfectly. 1998-2005 are my dark ages, and I didn't even know many of the featured songs. The Girls got me back in the game.

Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai UndercityBehind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity

Agonizingly hard to be poor in India; harder still when all the government actors are unapologetically corrupt. Amazing reporting.
The Three Sisters




The Three Sisters

Life sucks. It seems so much better over there. But maybe not. Gets a pass for being novel at the time, but hasn't aged well.





Misbehaving: The Making of Behavioral Economics

Misbehaving: The Making of Behavioral Economics

Not a lot new here if you've read Nudge and Kahnemann, but the narrative is interesting, especially the unwillingness of economists to accept that people often don't act rationally, despite so much evidence to the contrary.


Mindfulness in Plain English



Mindfulness in Plain English


Overlong, but with some good tips on meditation, which I'll try.


The Bell Jar



The Bell Jar

After the first 100 pages, I couldn't figure out why I had disliked this so much in high school. The remaining 2/3 reminded me.