Reading Things / Summer 2021
Welcome to Reading Things, a quarterly newsletter from the Thingelstad Family, sharing thoughts on and about books! Thank you for reading with us! š
In this issue: Here in the Real World, Think Again, My Eyes Are Up Here, Klara and the Sun, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, and Radical Markets.
Welcome to the second issue of Reading Things for Summer 2021! Tammy kicked things off last time, and this time I thought I would share a little bit of the background behind this new project.
The idea for Reading Things started about a year before we sent the Spring 2021 first issue. I had been thinking about a digital project that Tammy and I could do together, and I kept coming back to books and reading. As I thought about it, the idea just wouldn't go away. I pitched the family on it once, and nobody seemed to get excited, so I sort of filed it away. But it kept coming back, so I decided to push through and get everyone on board.
I felt there were many great reasons to do Reading Things.
- A fun family project. The web and our phones are often isolating experiences. I don't think of the web that way, and I wanted a project that we could all do together. A newsletter seemed like a great option. I've even considered that this can all still work even when the kids fly the nest.
- Reading is good. It is good for you, and I'd like to do more of it. Tammy reads more than I do, and she enjoys it. I love the idea of creating a priority for reading.
- Writing is good. Maybe even more than reading! Creating a forum for our own written words is something that I have valued for over two decades of blogging. The act of forming sentences and paragraphs into thoughts is fundamental. I firmly believe the only way to write better is to write more. Reading Things creates an opportunity (and deadline!) for us to all write.
- Writing about what you are reading is great! Chocolate and peanut butter! One of the things I wish that I blogged about more was the books I read. Tammy mentioned earlier in the year that she wanted to write about books she had read so that she could retain more. Reflecting on your thoughts from a book is one of the highest forms of praise I think you can give a book.
- Learn about being a creator online. I love to create online, and I wanted to share that feeling and value with the rest of the family, and to be honest, nudge them along a bit too. My web is a writable medium. It is a blank canvas for us to express our thoughts and share our creations with others.
- Creating on our own! I wanted to share the act of creating without using some giant technology company that is surveilling you and your friends. I like that this is email and all open standards not governed by any giant tech company. This is an ethos I feel strongly about, and I want to impart with my kids.
I think those are pretty good reasons, and so far, it is delivering on most if not all of those. Iām looking forward to continuing this project for many more issues to come!
Before we get to the books, a few of you shared comments, kudos, and feedback with us. We got one suggestion to share a board game recommendation with everyone. While not on topic about books, we are considering that. There was also a note about sharing some books from that past that may be great for a specific age group. We are still taking those in and will consider them for the Fall issue. In the meantime, if you have anything to share, just hit reply and say Hi! š ā Jamie
Reading Things has already exceeded 100 subscribers! š
We appreciate you all joining us on this fun adventure around books. To celebrate 100 subscribers, we are doing a couple of things. š„³
We donated $100 to Little Free Library, $1 per subscriber! š¤© I think most people are familiar with them, particularly in the metro area, but we have always liked the organization and what they do. It is a little bonus that it was founded just across the river in Wisconsin. š
We have also minted a special digital token (technically an NFT) just for you! Go to Reading Things 100 to get your very own token for being one of the first 100 subscribers. You can get a token with an email address, or if you have an Ethereum wallet, put your address in, and you will be minted a special one-time token to keep! š
Here in the Real World
Sara Pennypacker (2021), 336 pages.
I honestly believe that any person would benefit from reading this book. Technically, itās categorized as a book for kids. However, while it might be written with kids in mind, this book is for everyone. The basic story is simple enough, but the details make it impressive. The rich character development throughout the story not only makes the characters on the page seem to become a part of the actual world, but it also makes the book fulfilling to read. Like you've made the world a better place simply by turning some pages. Like by watching 11-year-old Ware become a better version of himself throughout the story, you've improved just by reading it. Furthermore, Pennypacker's writing style makes every sentence unique. Iām talking about the unconventional, almost poetic placement of words on the page. While many might skim over some of the complex sentences, taking a second to really understand them is the key to fully appreciating this heartwarming story. The story is told in such a delicate manner that it feels as though the author is whispering the whole thing in your ear, like a secret- just for you. In this way, 100 pages could slip by while seeming like only a few sentences. The words themselves are so vulnerable, so fragile, that it truly does have the effect of secrets spilled out onto the page.
Here in the Real World is the classic heartwarming, feel-good story of a few insignificant kids making a significant transformation to their world. Itās the heroic tale of them discovering who they really are, or, more like it, finally coming to terms with who they always have been. The best part is, itās a story that has never been told before.
One building, one grandma, two kids, and a camera. One very special summer lays aheadā¦ ā Mazie
Think Again
Adam Grant (2021), 257 pages.
I read a brief intro to Think Again and was instantly drawn to the topic. I hoped for a foundational book with a lot of utility, and I feel like I got that. I have definitely developed concepts and principles that deserve a āthink againā to make sure they are still valid.
Grant starts his approach by pulling from research by Phil Tetlock. Tetlockās research suggests that we often slip into three mindsets: preachers, prosecutors, and politicians. Grant adds Scientist to that, and if all I took from this book was this model, that would be valuable enough. I spent some time asking myself, āWhen advocating for this concept, what persona have I adopted?ā If you ask yourself that question objectively and then apply the framework, it can immediately help you understand the weaknesses in your own position and what to watch out for.
I enjoyed this book and will definitely use the concepts. I found the essential message of the book is about asking questions. Ask open-ended questions that prompt people to rethink on their own. Donāt try and convince them, as that will likely have the opposite effect.
If I have a gripe about the book, it is in many of the other visuals. There are a variety of graphs that lack the basic principles of good data visualization. I am sure it is intentional, and the authors attempt to keep things light and easy to understand. Still, I found them distracting in their simplicity. ā Jamie
My Eyes are Up Here
Laura Zimmerman (2020), 352 pages.
The first time our newsletter went out, which was the last time it went out, one of the replies we received was from a guy whose wife just wrote a YA novel. I thought it would be fun to check it out and review it here. First, let me say that anyone writing any novel is a feat that I find very impressive. Even writing a story seems elusive to me, but an actual book, wow. I thought it was so cool that someone that Jamie knows has a wife, and that wife wrote a book, got it published, and the book was even a Minnesota Book Award finalist.
I didnāt know anything about the book when I purchased it other than this guyās wife wrote it, the title, and that it was a YA novel. It turns out the book is about a teenage girl, who happens to be Mazieās same age, who has recently had her boobs grow from normal size to really, really big, and sheās coming to terms with that by hiding from others in huge clothes and avoiding a lot of life because she doesnāt want to deal with her boobs.
Iām someone who also has boobs, and while my boobs arenāt particularly large, they are big enough that they get in the way of a lot of things, mainly sporty things like running. I donāt know how many times Iāve dreamed of running as I did as a little kid with no boobs flopping up and down with every step. Meaning to say, I could relate to our protagonist.
I thought the book was smart and funny. I enjoyed hopping back into the high school world and getting to know the characters. I found the book similar to a John Hughes movie from my teen yearsā¦ very satisfying. š Thanks to Laura Zimmerman for writing the book and to her husband for letting us know about it! ā Tammy
Klara and the Sun
Kazuo Ishiguro (2021), 303 pages.
This is my second Ishiguro novel. I read Never Let Me GoĀ in 2011 with my book club, and I loved that book. It has come back to me many times since Iāve read it, and I suspect Klara will also come back to me for years to come.
As you would expect from Ishiguro, the writing is superb, and the story is rich. The book is told through Klara, an Artificial Friend or, more directly, a robot. The story is divided into six major parts of Klaraās experiences. You get to hear her thoughts as she tries to figure out human emotion and as she architects her scheme with the Sun that is the majority of the book. I particularly loved how Ishiguro describes her vision during intense scenes. He never describes directly the technical components that would manifest what he describes because, to Klara, that is just her. But he shows her compute limitations in intriguing ways.
It was also interesting that Ishiguro set this book told through an Artificial Friend in a world where children are being ālifted.ā Lifted isnāt explained fully, but it is later described as genetic engineering. The central figures in the story have all been manipulated by engineering, whether the silicon or genetic kind.
I would thoroughly recommend this book to a wide variety of readers. Iām hoping both Mazie and Tammy pick it up now that Iām done with it. ā Jamie
Diary of a Wimpy Kid Series
Jeff Kinney (2007-2020), 15 books.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid is a funny, fast, and excellent read. I have read every book FIVE times and I still like them. It is about 2 days to read and is very easy to read. So let's hear about the book.
It is about this kid in middle school named Greg and he is very unlucky. He also has a friend named Rowely which he is always kind of mean to. Anything that is good is always bad and there are only a few pictures were anyone is smiling. Also he has some pretty crazy thoughts. The last thing to know is that his mom got him a diary when he asked for a journal so he is also pretty mad about that in the beginning.
I would say most people have heard about this book but if you have not you have got to get it. There are 15 books in the series and also later Rowely gets a journal and makes a whole new book which has 3 in that series currently. So thats all I have to say about the book so bye!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ā Tyler
Radical Markets
Eric A. Posner and E. Glen Weyl (2018), 368 pages.
Radical Markets was suggested (but not picked) in my book club and the premise of the book piqued my interest. As I have been exploring deeper into crypto over the last several months, particularly in decentralized finance (DeFi), there are routinely references to bringing market-based dynamics to a variety of different areas. When I then saw that the introduction to the book was co-written by Vitalik Buterin, the creator of Ethereum, and Jaron Lanier, who is a pioneer in virtual and augmented reality (and highly critical of social media), my curiosity grew.
If we aspire to prosperity and progress, we must be willing to question old truths, to get at the root of the matter, and to experiment with new ideas. This is what we have tried to do.
I read Radical Markets as an exploration of ideas. Posner & Weyl do not claim to have answers but instead suggest that we need to continue to innovate our approach to markets. A significant component being how technology may allow us to bring market concepts to more areas of life. The book illustrates radical market concepts in five different sections: Property is Monopoly, Radical Democracy, Uniting the World's Workers, Dismembering the Octopus, and Data as Labor.
Yet Smith passionately believed that inequality was mainly the result of legal and social restrictions that favored the aristocracy and were incompatible with a market economy.
I found the sections on Property, Democracy, and Data very interesting. The quadratic voting mechanism described in the Radical Democracy section seemed incredibly powerful to me and very novel. I found myself wishing that I could have quadratic voting now and how it would allow me to express my views so much better. The Property discussion was very provoking as it went into some areas around property ownership that I just had never considered. And the Data one made me think that there could be a better way for people to be compensated for their role in large-scale technology systems.
The Worker and Ownership sections I found the least convincing. In fact, the Octopus one to me seemed to miss the mark entirely on solving a real problem and seemed the least likely to be something that could be implemented. The Worker one just seemed odd, but I will admit to reading it and thinking that I really don't understand the situation that a migrant worker is in and the tradeoffs even present in the current system. As a result, while it put me off with some of the ideas, I accept that it is possibly much better than any system we have today.
The book concluded with a concept that I had not considered, Markets as a Computer.
The "market" is then in some sense a giant computer composed of these smaller but still very powerful computers. If it allocates resources efficiently, it does so by harnessing and combining their separate capacities.
I sat with this concept for a while and still am. Considering the world enabled by DeFi and the radical markets that exist today in crypto solutions, it seems like that market as a computer is more real than ever. ā Jamie
Tammy's Corner
Summertime and the living is easyā¦ Itās time for another Tammyās corner. First off, Iād like to announce the winner of the $50 gift card to Content Books in Northfield, Minnesota. Each person had a 33.3% shot as only three people entered the competition, but there can only be one winner, and Julie Berman is that lucky winner! Julie, I will shoot you an email with the gift card shortly. Congrats!
Speaking of Content Books, Iāve still to read one of the books that I got there last quarter. Not sure what my problem is, but High Dive by Jonathan Lee didnāt grab me during the first few chapters, and Iāve since to pick it back up. I have a thing about reading all of the books that I purchase, so I will read it at some point. The other book, The Adventureās Son by Roman Dial, did get a read, and I quite enjoyed it. Itās a sad book as a very adventurous father retraces the steps of his very adventurous grown son after he disappears in South America. Itās part memoir of both father and son and part meditation and remembrance of a life lived well but cut short.
The three bookstores that were submitted in the contest were Magers and Quinn in Minneapolis, Birch Bark Books in Minneapolis, and Fair Trade Books in Red Wing. Iāve been to both Magers and Quinn and Birch Bark, but not Fair Trade Books. I decided it would be good to visit all three and buy a book at each one. Gotta keep the virtuous circle going! Sometimes the best-laid plans just donāt happen, and as of yet, I havenāt visited any of the bookstores. š In the beginning, summer is like a blank slate just waiting for adventures, but it quickly turns into a crowded canvas with nary a spot to add color.
Somehow I did make it back to Content Books a couple of times and purchased several more books, so now I have many things to read! ā Tammy
Reading List
What are we reading next? A small sampling from our collective book pile.
- Indistractable by Nir Eyal
- The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin
- A Wolf Called Wonder by Rosanne Perry
- The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoners Dilemma by Trenton Lee Stewart and Diana Sudyka
- Chatter by Ethan Kross
- To Shake the Sleeping Self by Jedidiah Jenkins
- A Man At Arms by Steven Pressfield
- We Are Not From Here by Jenny Torres Sanchez
Previous Reading Thingsā¦
- Spring 2021: The Book Thief, Atomic Habits, Treasure Hunters, The WEIRDest People in the World, The Second Mountain
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