Recently Mentioned Books
Showing 25 of 6798 mentions, ordered by most recent.
My favorite books on Indian textiles are cited in my discussion of that topic in Creative Destruction: How Globalization is Changing the World’s Cultures . But it’s more a question of reading a bunch of them, rather than picking out a select few. Simple, direct searches will get you to where you need to go.
9. Studying textiles also will bring to your attention India’s tribes and indigenous peoples. And it ties in readily to India’s broader cultural influence throughout Southeast Asia .
Homer, The Odyssey , translated by Emily Wilson. I haven’t read this yet, but it is getting consistently rave reviews.
Robin Hanson and Kevin Simler, The Elephant in the Brain: Hidden Motives in Everyday Life . At first this was slated for my 2018 list, but it turns out the Kindle edition is out now, so it gets to make both lists.
Samanta Schweblin, Fever Dream: A Novel, [Distancia de Rescate].
The Valmiki Ramayana , translated by Bibek Debroy. I have only browsed this so far, but it is definitely worthy of mention.
Mulatu of Ethiopia , the title says it all.
Django Bates, Saluting Sgt. Pepper . A German (!) big band redoes the whole album, with a semi-comic music hall feel, intricate horn arrangements, works surprisingly well.
Alexandre Tharaud, Hommage a’ Barbara , classical pianist goes the route of French song, wonderful acoustics to these arrangements.
Cecile McLorin Salvant, Dreams and Daggers . The new Ella Fitzgerald.
Charles Lloyd New Quartet, Passin’ Thru . If their last few albums were released during the golden age of jazz, they would be revered to this day.
If you insist on something Brazilian, we can go back a year and pull out Sociedade Recreativa .
Minore Manes : Rebetika Songs , from Smyrna.
5. I just pre-ordered the new Edward Tenner book, due out in April .
That is another truly splendid book by Navid Kermani . Imagine deep and thoughtful essays on Goethe and Islam, Kleist and love, Shiite passion plays, Wagner and empathy, and why he doesn’t so much sympathize with King Lear, all from a George Steiner brand of polymath. As I’ve mentioned before, Kermani is ethnically Persian but was born and grew up in Germany. Imagine a devout Muslim absorbing and internalizing the best of German classical literary culture, including Lessing, Zweig, Benjamin, ...
So says N.J. Enfield, in his new book How We Talk: The Inner Workings of Conversation .
Where?, I hear you asking. No, that is the title of a new book by Karl Sigmund and the subtitle is The Vienna Circle and the Epic Quest for the Foundations of Science . I enjoyed this book very much, though I don’t recommend it as a balanced introduction to its chosen topic. I liked it best for its whims and interstices:
That is from Peter J. Bowler, A History of the Future: Prophets of Progress from H.G.Wells to Isaac Asimov .
This new memoir is one of my very favorite books of the year, and perhaps you recall Tomalin’s famous biographies of Hardy, Pepys, Dickens, Nelly Ternan, and Jane Austen. This time it is her life. The story is hard to excerpt, but here is one bit:
The author is Peter Guardino and the subtitle is A History of the Mexican-American War . This book brought the War to life for me as no other book has, most of all by considering issues of morale, organization, and how hard did the Mexicans really fight back (more than many sources claim). Here is one good “fact of the day”:
Bryan Caplan, The Case Against Education: Why the Education System is a Waste of Time and Money.
Richard White, The Republic for Which It Stands: The United States During Reconstruction and the Gilded Age, 1865-1896 .
Dennis C. Rasmussen, The Infidel and the Professor: David Hume, Adam Smith, and the Friendship That Shaped Modern Thought .
Jean M. Twenge, iGen: Why Today’s Super-Connected Kids are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy — and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood .
Peter H. Wilson, Heart of Europe: A History of the Holy Roman Empire .