How to be stoic massimo5/28/2023 ![]() ![]() It is rather demanding, stipulating that moral character is the only truly worthy thing to cultivate health, education, and even wealth are considered "preferred indifferents." Stoicism, like any life philosophy, may not appeal to or work for everyone. "Einstein's God": the simple, indubitable fact that Nature is understandable by reason.Identification of God with Nature. Stoicism is not about suppressing or hiding emotion–rather, it is about acknowledging our emotions, reflecting on what causes them, and redirecting them for our own good. See my notes below or Amazon for details and reviews. Or go straight to the source and read Seneca or Marcus Aurelius. ![]() ![]() It's essentially a walkthrough of Epictetus. If you're looking to get into Stoicism, check out A Guide to the Good Life, Ego Is the Enemy, or The Obstacle Is the Way. I didn't feel like it brought enough original ideas to the table, based on the books already out there. ![]() New addition to my library of Stoic philosophy. How to Be a Stoic: Using Ancient Philosophy to Live a Modern Life – by Massimo Pigliucciĭate read: 6/24/17. ![]()
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Tormented Obsession by Anna Zaires5/28/2023 ![]() In addition to reading and writing, Anna enjoys drinking tea (coconut oolong, anyone?), watching addictive TV shows, and discussing book ideas during long walks with her amazing husband. Every book Anna writes is a product of their unique collaborative process. In 2013, she became a full-time author, pursuing her lifelong dream of writing romance novels.ĭima Zales is the love of her life and a huge inspiration in all aspects of her writing. Currently residing in Florida, Anna is happily married to Dima Zales (a science fiction and fantasy author) and closely collaborates with him on all their works.Īfter graduating from the University of Chicago with a degree in Economics, Anna spent eight years on Wall Street analyzing stocks and writing research reports. Since then, she has always lived partially in a fantasy world where the only limits were those of her imagination. ![]() She wrote her first story shortly thereafter. ![]() ![]() Anna Zaires fell in love with books at the age of five, when her grandmother taught her to read. ![]() Carl sagan a candle in the dark5/27/2023 ![]() And yet, disturbingly, in today's so-called information age, pseudoscience is burgeoning with stories of alien abduction, channeling past lives, and communal hallucinations commanding growing attention and respect. How can we make intelligent decisions about our increasingly technology-driven lives if we don't understand the difference between the myths of pseudoscience and the testable hypotheses of science? Pulitzer Prize-winning author and distinguished astronomer Carl Sagan argues that scientific thinking is critical not only to the pursuit of truth but to the very well-being of our democratic institutions.Ĭasting a wide net through history and culture, Sagan examines and authoritatively debunks such celebrated fallacies of the past as witchcraft, faith healing, demons, and UFOs. ![]() Rich in surprising information and beautiful writing." A stirring defense of informed rationality. ![]() ![]() From the first page to the last, this book is a manifesto for clear thought." ![]() Going postal novel5/27/2023 ![]() ![]() In my experience, the best way to get something done is to give it to someone who is busy – Vetinariīut one of the end quotes summarizes it all (this can be a SPOIL so if you have not read the book, this may spoil a bit of the fun… but I think not much). ![]() One great quote on a subject I wrote about previously: ![]() People are definitely not rational.Īnd now that I am reading in my kindle I am also highlighting the book! (I have never highlighted a real book because I think it damages it… and now I see that I have missed some fun, but well, I am also a non-rational human being just like everyone else). And also of how people will pay lots of money to have something that only they have… do you collect stamps? why? what is their real value, other than that they can be used to send and receive mail? but still, you can see stamps bought and sold for thousands of dollars… and let’s not mention the amount of money paid for Elvis’ underwear and stuff like that. But nonetheless, this is another EXCELLENT book by Terry Pratchett.īoth Making Money and Going Postal are an impressive parody about the monetary world and how most people are gullible and will transform lies given by others to truths in their head if they think the lie is to their advantage. ![]() As I mentioned in a previous post, I should have read Going Postal book before reading Making Money, because it gives some interesting background on the characters that appear in both of the stories, and reading Making Money before Going Postal does spoil some of the fun. ![]() Salman rushdie sea of stories5/27/2023 ![]() ![]() Sengupta dislikes Haroun’s father and sometimes he launches into criticisms of Rashid, telling Haroun’s mother that Rashid has “his head stuck in the air and his feet off the ground. Sometimes Haroun likes this and sometimes he does not. Sengupta often treats Haroun as if he were her own son. Even stranger are the Senguptas, the Khalifa’s upstairs neighbors, who have no children at all. Haroun is an only child, a strange circumstance in a city where there are mostly big families. Haroun continues to ask these questions of his father all the time until one day, Haroun asks “one question too many, and then all hell broke loose.” Haroun often wonders where his father gets all these stories since “stories can’t simply come out of thin air.” His father will only say that all his stories come from the great Story Sea. His stories are fantastical, full of strange characters and dramatic situations. Rashid travels a lot because his cheery stories are in demand. ![]() “To his admirers he was Rashid the Ocean of Notions, as stuffed with cheery stories as the sea was full of glumfish but to his jealous rivals he was the Shah of Blah.” Haroun and his family live a happy life in the city, until one day, when something goes wrong. His father, Rashid, is a famous storyteller. Haroun Khalifa lives in the middle of this city with his father and mother. The city stands “by a mournful sea full of glumfish” and all the people are full of sadness and melancholy. The novel opens in the “saddest of cities” in the country of Alifbay. ![]() Endersgame5/27/2023 ![]() ![]() Card first wrote Ender's Game as a novelette, but later expanded it into a novel. The first four have been described (and released as a box set) as The Ender Quartet and, together with Ender in Exile, as The Ender Quintet. Starting with Ender's Game, five novels and one novella have been released that tell the story of Ender. The series protagonist, Andrew "Ender" Wiggin, is one of the child soldiers trained at Battle School (and eventually Command School) to be the future leaders for the protection of Earth.Įnderverse Ender series The series is set in a future where mankind is facing annihilation by an aggressive alien society, an insect-like race known formally as "Formics", but more colloquially as "Buggers". The first two novels in the series, Ender's Game and Speaker for the Dead, each won both the Hugo and Nebula Awards. It currently consists of sixteen novels, thirteen short stories, 47 comic issues, an audioplay, and a film. The series started with the novelette Ender's Game, which was later expanded into the novel of the same title. ![]() The Ender's Game series (often referred to as the Ender saga and also the Enderverse) is a series of science fiction books written by American author Orson Scott Card. 1985-2008 Series of six SF novels by Orson Scott Card ![]() The black arrow book5/27/2023 ![]() ![]() A VG+ copy of this uncommon historical adventure novel. half gilt lightly rubbed and marked on extremities. 8vo, xiii, 322pp, 12 b/w illus., contemp. Eight page list of Scribner's publications at rear. Later that year the book was published in Great Britain by Cassells, with different illustrations, by H M Paget. A William Low illustration was used as a frontis, whilst one of Scribner's illustrators, Alfred Brennan, produced a set of line drawings to further illustrate the book. In early 1888 Stevenson was persuaded by Scribner's to publish it in book form. The story was written by Stevenson whilst he was living in America and first appeared as a serial in 1883, in a Philadelphia newspaper, illustrated by William H Low. ![]() ![]() Half title page states 'The Black Arrow (Author's Edition)'. Illustrated with a black and white frontis plate by William H Low, and eleven black and white line drawings by Alfred Brennan. The book is firm and complete with the occasional light smudge on pages. Previous owner's ink stamp on front free page. Small 2-3 cm square loss at top outer edge of front end paper. Red cloth on boards with gilt lettering to spine. Alfred Brennan and William H Low (illustrator). ![]() Read My Lips by Kelle Z. Riley5/27/2023 ![]() ![]() Despite a few background infos thrown into the mix, they felt quite unidimensional. But, to be honest, I never clicked with either of them. She had lost trust into people and the idea of her getting it back thanks to building a relationship with him was very appealling. He let his vulnerability out with Claire, which made me quickly like him. However it was quickly put aside, coming up only from time to time, but never having a real emotional impact on the story -I loved the writing scene on the boat, but it was the only time I felt anything regarding this theme beyond the first quarter of the novel.Ĭlayton's character began strong. A dyslexic CEO isn't something we encounter often and this feature rendered Clayton/Artie very endearing at first. Besides, the plot sounded very originial. As a big romantic, I swooned reading some lines that were dream-worthy. There were a few really nice, heartfelt moments. The story was okay, but way too predictible. ![]() Salvation by Sloane Kennedy5/27/2023 ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() But Ronan can’t need anyone, least of all his dead fiancé’s younger brother. With one brush of his lips, Seth managed to do to Ronan what no other had since the day Ronan watched the light in his fiancé’s eyes go out forever. But the last person he expects to come back into his life is the man he drove away with one innocent, stolen kiss. Seven years after the loss of his parents in a violent home invasion that left him permanently scarred both inside and out, 21-year-old Seth Nichols is trying to put his life back together so he can take over the reins of his father’s global shipping empire. But years later, he’s forced to confront the one link to his past that he can’t sever. Driven by a thirst for vengeance, he turns his hatred into building an underground group that can do what he couldn’t that fateful day…take the lives of the guilty to save the lives of the innocent. Blurb: Trauma surgeon Ronan Grisham lost everything the day the man he loved was stolen from him in a brutal attack. ![]() We, Two Boys by Aline Sax5/27/2023 ![]() ![]() 14 & up)īelial, Prince of Hell, makes his move on London in this trilogy closer. With the events of the Holocaust growing ever more remote with the passage of time, Sax gives modern readers an unrelenting, heart-rending insight into the hell that the Nazis created. ![]() Strzelecki’s pen, ink and black-and-white pencil illustrations graphically depict pain and despair as they accompany text printed on stark white or black backgrounds. Misha takes part in the doomed Warsaw Uprising and survives to tell the world of this last act of defiance. In short staccato sentences, he bears witness to the madness, telling it all, from the struggle to stay alive to the corpses in the streets to the beatings and executions. Sax gives voice to the fear and anger, hopelessness and terror through Misha, a fictional young teen who represents those who really lived and died there. Finally, relocations to the concentration camps emptied the ghetto. Then thousands were moved to the overcrowded ghetto, where they died of epidemics and starvation. Jews were prevented from using public transportation, doing business or attending schools. When the Nazis took Warsaw in 1939, they immediately initiated their separate war against the Jews in an ever-worsening web of destruction. The sights, sounds and smells of the Warsaw ghetto assail readers’ senses in a raw, brutal telling of the unimaginable horror of that time and that place. ![]() |