Why I Am Not Going to Buy a Computer by Wendell Berry – Book Review | IcthusBookCorner

I will try to create a coherent text about my opinions on this book. The keyword here is TRY.

This book by Wendell Berry, an American poet, novelist and environmental activist, is an argument for a life lived slowly. It is also a discussion on technological progress and his ideas about a more simplistic society.

The first part of this book consists of the essay with the homonymous title. The second part includes the author’s response to the letters he received from critics regarding the essay.

I was angry while reading the text and neither because I was opposed to the opinions stated in Berry’s text nor to the reactions it caused. I was angry due to how the discussion was handled by both the author and the critics. I agreed with most of the point Berry was trying to make however I did not agree with some of his proposed solutions. (Namely, the way he talked about his wife as if all women agreed with what she agreed on doing for her husband.) Here is where I believe the critics were right to call Berry out, although I am not okay with the way they did so.

If you read it in a group or a classroom setting, it will lead to plenty of interesting discussions. The book is very much a document of its time, which is fantastic to look back on, and it was a quick read and easy to get through.

However, as far as arguments go there is not much logical structure to the text, and there is a self-indulgent style which I don’t appreciate. I might have been just expecting more from this than what I got.

Overall, I think this is a good read and would recommend it for anyone looking for a fast-paced book on slow living (how ironic) and in general, sustainability-related texts. I didn’t rate this book, as I usually do, sorry for that. Hope this was useful or at least entertaining (I don’t think this was entertaining for anyone besides me though.)

Bye bye, keep on reading.

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• https://twitter.com/icthus_book
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• https://www.goodreads.com/margaridadesousa

Link to the book:

• https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/Why-I-Am-Not-Going-to-Buy-a-Computer-by-Wendell-Berry-author/9780241337561

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Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly – Book Review

Hidden Figures is a non-fiction book that tells the story of three African American women who worked for NASA during the Space Race. The book takes place from the 1930s through the 1960s, time when most people still viewed women as inferior to men and many parts of the US still practised segregation.

This book was very well researched and it was definitely an eye-opener for me. The narrative is for sure helped by the author’s personal familiarity with the subject, not to mention the relevance of the topic. I loved not only the history and science aspects of this book (because I’m a nerd) but the stories of the women and their intelligence and courage as well.

I really enjoyed this book even though its writing was somewhat dry which may be a negative point to some. What annoyed me a bit was the fact that the narrative jumped around quite a bit, both in time and between individuals.

Overall, I think this is a really good book and its strengths outweigh any negative aspect I could find while reading. I also really recommend the film if you read the book and felt a bit lost at one time or another.  If you like science, history, stories about civil rights, this book is a must-read for sure.

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars.

Buy, keep on reading.

January Book Wrap Up|2019

Hello, people of the interweb!

It’s never too late for a wrap up if it is let me believe it since we are already in the middle of February! I managed to read six books in January which was a great start, two of them because of my internship, but I’m still counting them for this wrap-up.

Let’s get on with this wrap-up!

First, we have Death by Black Hole and other cosmic quandaries by the one and only Neil deGrasse Tyson!

My rating: 4/5 stars
Recommend to: Shameless nerds like me with a bit more than the high school understanding of physics.
Genre: Science, Nonfiction
Sinopse: “Tyson compiles his favourite essays, which were first published in a monthly column in “Natural History.” One of the worlds best-known astrophysicists, he is at his best here, as a natural teacher who simplifies the complexities of science while sharing his infectious excitement for our universe.” (via wook)

The second reading adventure I had last month was Sweethearts by Gemma Gilmore.

My rating: 2/5 stars
Recommend to: I don’t know…
Genre: LGBT, Young Adult
Sinopse: “When seventeen-year-old Ingrid Harper realizes she may not have the talent to pursue a scholarship for the most prestigious art school in Australia, she turns to pink hair dye as a distraction.” (via Goodreads)

 

After that, I read Introduction to High-Temperature Superconductivity by T. Sheahan and Introduction to Superconductivity by Michael Tinkham. Since they are both academic books, it doesn’t make sense to rate them, but they are amazing books on the topic of superconductivity if any of you need to do research on this specific area of study.  I read them because of the internship I’m currently doing and they made me feel much more knowledgeable on the topic.

Then, I picked up Astrophysics for People in a Hurry, once again by Neil deGrasse Tyson.

My rating: 5/5 stars
Recommend to: Once again, shameless nerds like me. This one is a bit easier to follow than Death by Black Hole and other cosmic quandaries, so if you haven’t had a look at anything science since high school it is still quite an easy read.
Genre: Science, Nonfiction
Sinopse: “The essential universe, from our most celebrated and beloved astrophysicist.” (via wook)

 

The last book I read this January was The Mother by Maximo Gorki, and if you read my review on this book you know how emotional it was for me.

My rating: 4/5 stars
Recommend to: Everybody
Genre: Classic
Sinopse: “This novel tells the story of the common proletariat who protested against the czar and the capitalists which eventually led to the October Revolution…Mother represents hundreds of workers who are concerned with living their lives.” (via Amazon)

What was your favourite read of the month?

I’ve been struggling for the last seven minutes, trying to figure out what else to say here, but there isn’t much else I can say really. So…I hope you enjoyed this post. If you read any of these books please let me know!

Bye, keep on reading!

Little update!

Hello, people of the interweb!

Probably nobody cares but I feel like I have to explain the reason why I went so many months without posting.

First of all, last semester I attended a seminar on Superconductivity, which led to me being able to get an internship at an amazing investigation center in Barcelona. It was all fun and games until I realized I wasn’t going to be able to attend the exam season my uni has for anyone who fails any class during the semester or decides to improve his/her grades. This had I huge impact on my overall stability during this semester since I had never had a semester when I didn’t attend said exam season.

I had to achieve reasonable grades in all subjects in order to do this internship. I was under a crazy amount of pressure and stress, I mean I don’t consider myself dumb but I’m not the most intelligent person you’ll ever meet, in addition to my horrible study habits. It got to a point when I hardly got out of the house except for classes and tests, I hardly spoke to anyone, I decided to clean my phone of all type of social media I had and I only really used my computer to uni-related stuff.

Me being happy and not carrying about uni for 10min straight!

Everything is okay now, I’m currently doing my internship, sightseeing on the weekends and I even went to a karaoke bar for the first time in my life. I can honestly say that IT’S ALL GOOD IN THE HOOD.

I really just wanted to say sorry for not posting for so long and to all the authors who were kind enough to send me a copy of their books, if I haven’t reviewed them yet, I’m extremely sorry, I’m doing my best to catch up on my reading.

Bye, and don’t forget to keep on reading!

Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil deGrasse Tyson – Book Review

Here we go again with another science book review for all the nerds like me!

I realized in my last review that it is kind of difficult to review a nonfiction science book since the only thing you can really say is if you enjoyed the writing and if you found the topic to be interesting or not. So I guess that is what I will do!

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Astrophysics for People in a Hurry is a short and sweet introduction to the vast world of astrophysics. Let me just say that even though it is stated that is for people in a hurry if you didn’t attend any science classes during high school some parts of the book might seem a bit daunting, I understand Tyson can’t simplify things that are already pretty simple for anyone with basic science knowledge.

 

I’ve already stated in my last review that I love Tyson’s writing. He manages to be engaging, simple, funny, concise and thrilling all at once, which is honestly unbelievable. I hardly ever felt zoned out and that is pretty difficult for me when it comes to nonfiction books.

Now let’s talk topic here. I’m a huge science lover, big time nerd, love

 it all except for biology (but I don’t hate to be honest). Not to mention astrophysics, astronomy and everything space related in general was my big childhood dream (yes, I was the kid with a moon poster that watched all the universe documentaries on television). This book was amazing to reconnect me with my young self. I still love astrophysics to this day, but I gave it up for another love of mine -material science. As you can suspect the topic was a for sure loved thing.

In my opinion, the book fulfilled its purpose of explaining the physics behind the universe, together with doing it in a sensational way.

I give this book 5 out of 5 lovely stars.

Bye, keep on reading

Death by Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandaries by Neil DeGrasse Tyson – Book Review

I believe this is my first time reviewing a nonfiction book, let’s see how this goes.

If you don’t know who Neil DeGrasse Tyson is, he’s the king of making science simple, entertaining and informative all at once, not that I don’t like science, I love it, in fact, that is why I’m studying to be a scientist.

Death by Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandaries is a collection of essays on the cosmos written by Degrasse Tyson. The main purpose of this book is to introduce the reader to physics of black holes and other fascinating things that happen on the universe.

Each essay addresses a different topic, from the birth of the universe all the way to the Pluto wars. There is some overlap between essays which leads to some facts being repeated but it isn’t enough where you would roll your eyes. When you read you can see the excitement that Tyson has for his field, which makes you excited as well.

I really enjoyed this book, Tyson’s writing is light-hearted and he is able to crack some jokes here and there. He is also able to explain the most complex concepts and theories in an astonishing accessible way.

Smoothly entertaining, full of fascinating treats and frequently humorous, this book fulfilled its purpose of bringing science and astrophysics to us common folks who don’t know much about it or to people who already know something but feel like they want to know some more.

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars.

Bye, keep on reading.