'The Metaphysical Club' by Louis Menand

The Metaphysical Club, Louis Menand (2.0)

I have a hard time describing what this book is about. It purports to describe the main thinkers (ala the Metaphysical Club) in the late 1800’s/early 1900’s who drove some of the main ideas and philosophies in the US. I found the beginning interesting and the end did a relatively good job of wrapping it up, but I will attribute my frustration to the large middle bit. I got lost in the myriad of characters, varying timelines and lack of a linking narrative. The title is a bit misleading – the club did not exist for very long and there are no records of what was discussed. It’s not even mentioned until half-way through the book. Given all the characters discussed, I have forgotten who theoretically participated.  In the end I found the discussion of the North’s issues entering the Civil War, the definition(s) of abolitionists and the initiation of academic freedom quite interesting, but so much else in this book did not stick for me.

'The Lincoln Highway' by Amor Towles

The Lincoln Highway, Amor Towles (4.0)

I really enjoy Amor Towles’s characters, they are never all good or all bad, but at least one can be called ‘charming’. In this story the younger brother, Billy, gets to be the charming one. Throughout the book, the reader holds their breath so that nothing bad will occur to him. His innocence and belief in people were refreshing to read. Like the heroes in the book he carries with him, he and his brother, Emmett, are on a perilous journey. They meet interesting people, have companions join them and have obstacles put in their way. The ending was not quite what I expected, and I felt the book ended only part-way through the journey. I would have liked to have seen where Towles would take them. 

'The Old Ways' by Robert MacFarlane

 The Old Ways, Robert MacFarlane (2.5)

I liked the idea of this book a lot more than I liked reading it. A book describing a variety of walks, both the experience of the journey today and its history, sounds perfect. Unfortunately, I lost the story of each walk amongst the ornate language and liberal use of synonyms and metaphors. Good synonyms stand out to me, used every other sentence and I’m less appreciative. I did like the variety of paths and some of the characters the author meets were profoundly interesting. As with his previous book, there were nuggets of gold, but I was not keen on prospecting.

'This Tender Land' by William Kent Krueger

This Tender Land, William Kent Krueger (3.5)

It surprises me when a 400+ page book has an abrupt ending. I thought it was odd that my kindle was at 92%, but the story did not seem to be ending. Next thing I knew it wrapped up and I was reading the Epilogue! I can see why many people rated the book highly – likable characters being chased by despicable ones, racism of the times to bemoan, an interesting perilous journey and a whole lot of Americana thrown in along the way. The details related to the Depression were added well and appropriately heartbreaking. While I liked the storytelling, I found the book to be too long and a bit heavy handed with the messaging

'Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence' by Max Tegmark

 Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, Max Tegmark (3.5)

Tough book to read – due to technical content, story-telling flow and disturbing matters to consider. I liked the thought provoking ‘what-if’ scenarios which included things I had not considered before, but I felt the narrative strayed in the middle of the book to where I questioned the points being made. The author is definitely a thoughtful expert on AI, it’s current state and all the possible ways AI can progress. I particularly liked the first and last 20% of the book and wish there could be a shorter version for most readers. He ends with a relatively positive outlook that describes how a large group of AI experts are currently working on a framework to keep AI safe going forward. And encourages us to all be ‘mindful optimists’ with a goal to own technology (since it is here to stay) and not let it own us.

'Recursion' by Blake Crouch

 Recursion, Blake Crouch (3.5)

Blake Crouch consistently blows my mind. In ‘Dark Matter’, that was a great thing, in this book it was not as good. He gets full marks for creativity and his writing is generally excellent. The fault I found here is the same as what drives my intolerance for the movie, ‘Ground Hog Day’, I find repeated timelines can be boring. His multiple timelines in ‘Dark Matter’ were like multiple existences, here it is more about changing memories by traveling back in time. I did like the social and personal issues brought up with these concepts, but I was bored and depressed though much of the book. 

'The Fifth Season' by N. K. Jemison

The Fifth Season (The Broken Earth #1), N. K. Jemison (4.5)

It’s worth noting that this trilogy won the prestigious Hugo award for each of the 3 years a book was released. I can definitely see why the first one won and look forward to reading the other two. Ms. Jemison has created a unique world where seismic activity drives the lives of the inhabitants. Major earthquakes occur that wipe out nearly all civilization (the ‘seasons’). There is a group of humans (Orogenes) with powers to control the planet’s movement What is most interesting is that they do not run the world, they are the workers who attempt to keep it in control but are held in check by the Guardians. The social dynamics and messaging in this book are as clever as the world building. I find it refreshing to read something so different (what, no dragons, elves or dwarves in a fantasy book??) that puts our worlds issues in a different light. Very thought provoking! To top that the characters are amazing and how they interrelate is surprising without being gimmicky.