Hiya folks! Welcome to another post about books. I'll be posting a bunch of notable books I read recently below. Enjoy!
The Wind Knows My Name by Isabel Allende: I’ve concluded that when a book is translated from another language to English, it really loses something. It loses the rhythm and depth that most languages (other than English) have. This story is deeply moving and takes us across generations to show that irrespective of time and era, hate is incisive and deeply unoriginal. Nothing is new under the sun. Yes, even racism and bigotry.
Tyranny of the Minority by Daniel Ziblatt and Steven Levitsky: It is very rare that political scientists (or any academics tbh) write a book that is easy and enjoyable to read. This one is. At its core it’s a book about institutions and what makes them so flawed. For instance, the U.S. Constitution was designed in a pre-democratic era and allows partisan minorities to frustrate the majorities, a fact that clarifies so much about this country. It wasn’t the worst idea to empower minorities until we got to a place where the minority rule is in the hands of extremist or anti-democratic minorities. The big great thinkers of the 18th and 19th century like Tocqueville and John Adams were very afraid that democracy could easily be a “tyranny of the majority,” but now we have the opposite problem. I liked this book because it made the argument that our institutions will not save our democracy. We the people will. As someone who has been worried about the recent desecration of our institutions, it actually brings a lot of relief. The authors made the argument that for the sake of the durability of democracy, elections cannot always be high stakes. I disagree. The fact is they sometimes are. It’s not just that the losing parties will lose everything, it’s that the people lose catastrophically. This has never been more glaring that the past eight months in America. It also speaks to another scourge: when a group that perceives itself to be losing ground then choose to radicalize. Along the lines of nothing is new, they describe a scene where angry young men, mostly right wing militias stormed the parliament building to block the official tallying of vote in what culminated in violence. This scene is so visceral that you think they are describing January 6th 2021 but no, it’s February 6, 1934 in France! The core thesis of this book is that you can’t be semi-loyal to democracy. Even when it doesn’t favor you, you are either for it or against it. So, claiming to support democracy but turning a blind eye to violence or anti-democratic extremism is what makes the ambiguity dangerous.
Who Will Catch Us as We Fall by Iman Verjee: This was a long and a bit unwieldy. I kept waiting for that umph and it never happened. I’m fine with it being a slow-moving novel but this was set up as punchy. It does tell an important story of cleavages and how truly artificial they are. Plus, there is again the reminder of how poor and ineffective systems are destructive.
Games and Rituals by Katherine Heiny: What you need to know about this book is that I had read it before but somehow, I forgot and borrowed it again from the library. Then I started reading and I was like…wait. But then I decided to continue because truly, no one does laugh out loud funny books like Katherine Heiny (my favorite comedic writer!). It was oh so delightful to read about misfits and oddballs and life during the pandemic and cheating husbands and uptight wives and ugly bridesmaids dresses. Needless to say: LOVED IT. 10/10 No notes.
Hold my Girl by Charlene Carr: This book is every mother’s nightmare…I think? It’s devastating. Somehow from the first chapter or so, I already picked a side and held on to it till the end. I have always believed staunchly that biology is not what makes a mother nor what defines a family. Then the person I was routing against was written so poorly that it almost felt like it was deliberate to make us root against her despite all the trauma the writer slapped on her. Fantastic story but it just did not evoke any strong emotion from me. Plus, I would not advise anyone trying for a baby or any ivf mama to read this. Just not worth it. No kind of art is worth that torture, in my opinion.
Identity by Francis Fukuyama: The only reason I read this book was because of Fukuyama. He makes a strong case for his argument. But some of the logic was a bit odd, such as saying identity is purely psychological and has no true material value, an idea I vehemently disagree with. For example, he cites a Western Culture class at Stanford in 1987 with a syllabus that students were protesting to have expanded so that it would include nonwhite scholars. Fukuyama uses the words of the head of the Stanford Black student union that focusing on just white culture “crushes the psyche of minorities and it hurts people mentally and emotionally in ways that are not recognized” (p.102) to argue that the justification is “entirely psychological” and that a wider reading list will not necessarily “transmit valuable or timeless knowledge that would be educationally important” (p.103). This is categorically not true. At the very least, a wider reading list gives them something to challenge, broadens horizons, improves critical thinking. It’s more than psychological to me. He does make a strong case that identity politics hinders people from thinking. The strongest case he makes is that what people really want is a recognition of their worth and their value and empathy. I couldn’t agree more. But I also know it is not nearly enough. By the way (and this is me making this argument) when people hear “identity politics” they only think “Black” or “Hispanic” or “Gay” but really even the frustrations of the poor white farmer in Iowa IS identity politics. In fact, almost all politics IS identity politics. I’m going to write a whole post on this actually!
Sugar, Baby by Celine Saintclare: If too much was a book. There’s a part of this book where the main character reviews a book by her fellow sugar baby and she says the title should come with a disclaimer “requires substantial denial of self and the projection of a false image that may ultimately contribute to low self esteem and difficulties developing genuine connections with men. Additional complications may apply.” That was the rawest, most authentic, most honest part of the book. It’s also how I knew (okay, suspected) the author [likely] has firsthand experience with this. Sugaring (sleeping with men for financial compensation) can never be worth it. There is no circumstance, whether through sugaring or all the other ways people do it, would objectifying yourself like that to men—MEN!—ever be worth it. It's a very daring novel. I liked the art of it—the writing, the poetry. But not really the story. I like books that expose me to worlds I could never imagine but reviews tell me this is not even an accurate world of sugaring. So why stress me? Black British authors are worrisome. It’s like can you only write about Black women who sleep with rich white men? And like, is this an adult novel or a work of literary fiction with thoughtful discourse on our modern society? We will never know. Every character looks like a celebrity. Gucci bags, channel flaps. Chileeee. Then the timeline: 2 years? A year? Few months? But somehow this 21 year old has become all wise. It starts off having the promise of a social commentary but ends up being such a trivial bit on Gucci bags.
Ella Baker: Community Organizer of the Civil Rights Movement by J. Todd Moye: I read this book at an important time, I think. It reminded me of the Montgomery bus boycott in 1955. And how Black people had to walk MILES to work because it was either that or allow segregation on the buses. And they stood on business, leading to the biggest and most successful boycott in history. So whenever I’m tempted to buy from trash Target, I remember all our heroes past who said NOT ON MY WATCH. But also, people don’t talk nearly enough of the Black women in the civil rights movement. MLK was cool and all but the real nitty gritty work came from women like Ella Baker but misogyny means we don’t hear of the female civil rights leaders or the more introverted ones who worked doggedly behind the scenes and hated the spotlight. It’s a triumphant story of a quiet hero.
The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth: This is wild but extremely interesting. People are crazy man. Lol. But yeah, great book that keeps you on your toes. I recommend!
And that's that for today.
What have you been reading? Tell me!
Love,
I
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