Antonio Carioca
“No,” said the priest, “you don't need to accept everything as true, you only have to accept it as necessary.” “Depressing view,” said K. “The lie made into the rule of the world.”
Interestingly different. Obvious dated (as old as me). But some of the stories are fantastic, the last one, The cabinet if Oliver Naylor, being my favourite.
Fantastic little read, from a fantastic author. Camus and Vonnegut sort of invoke similar feelings in me, with their “and so it goes” and “life is just absurd”. Love them both.
It was particularly interesting to read it during the start of the Covid pandemic, with so many of the reactions on the book being replicated across the Globe.... very insightful...
It's definitely not a fluke that Dostoevsky is considered one of the greatest. This particular one is one of those rare books that equates to a solid punch in the stomach. I remember walking for hours on the streets of Kyiv ona very cold winter and going over bits of it over and over... Something that I ended up doing for days after finishing it.
And to this day it comes back to me every now and then and serves almost as a reminder and a moral compass.
Humbling.
I'm absolutely glad I stumbled onto this book. Not the type I'd normally pick up but being in Istanbul for a weekend motivated me to go for one of Pamuk's book.
The rich, deep and realistic tapestry he weaves of both human and urban development is bound to stay with you days and days after you put this book down.
An absolutely enthralling read, one that creeps in slowly and becomes more and more meaningful in its description of regular human beings and their (extra) ordinary lives.
Vonnegut never fails to deliver, this one in particular is incredible not only for being his first novel but also for remaining frighteningly relevant still today, over 70 years after it was written.
It blends two topics I've been rather interested in recently: what will the progress of AI do to the average man and his previous way of life and the cyclical nature of social revolutions.
As in Zamiatyn's We, Vonnegut reminds us we can't possibly foresee what the end of this whole process will be:
“And that left Paul. ‘To a better world,' he started to say, but he cut the toast short, thinking of the people of Ilium, eager to recreate the same old nightmare. He shrugged. ‘To the record,' he said, and smashed the empty bottle on a rock. Von Neumann considered Paul and then the broken glass. ‘This isn't the end, you know,' he said. ‘Nothing ever is, nothing ever will be–not even Judgment Day.' ‘Hands up,' said Lasher almost gaily. ‘Forward March'”
Vonnegut has over the past years become one of my favourite authors by far. His signature non linear narratives leaves you marvelling at his undeniable talent. His criticism on society and human beings in general precise, acid and yet, fun.
This particular book has to be one of my favourite ones by him.
Definitely a major intellectual tour de force. Refreshingly different to the usual historical narratives, which however is not say it is 100% convincing at times.
I just can't believe it took me so long to learn of the existence of this book, which has so clearly inspired both Orwell and Huxley in their most famous works.
An absolute fantastic read, specially in this latest, beautifully put together edition.
“There's no final revolution, there's no final number”
Fantastic introduction to the mind of an incredible man. Obviously a genius, with outstanding achievments in the world of physics (think project Manhattan) and yet laid back and quirky as fuck (look up him playing “Orange Juice” on youtube - you'd think he belongs in Asylum).
Of particular interest is the fact he spent some time at UFRJ, a university I went to for a while as well. His take on it couldn't be more accurate, that Brazilians were not taught to think, they were taught to remember facts. Sad, and a trait that I see in many countries far and wide.
(Just thought of his experiments with ants! In fact, I always think of it!)
Reads like a conversation, like having a beer with the most interesting person you've ever met.
I've known Chiang's work for years now (ever since listening to “Exhalation” on the EscapePod Podcast years ago) and have been a fan ever since. The movie Arrival, based on one of his short stories is a great example of how well he mixes thought-provoking science fiction with emotional themes that would ring true to most of us.
He has again delivered with this book of short-stories, with themes that would remind the reader of both Netflix's Black Mirror and Saramago. In particular, “The truth of fact, the truth of feeling” has now become my favourite short story of his:
“Digital memory will not stop us from telling stories about ourselves. As I said earlier, we are made of stories, and nothing can change that. What digital memory will do is change those stories from fabulations that emphasize our best acts and elide our worst, into ones that — I hope — acknowledge our fallibility and make us less judgmental about the fallibility of others”
Absolutely magnificent. Dostoivisly has a way of making you not only people you know in his novels (which in itself is quite an acomplisment) but also yourself (which at times can be rather unpleasant).
Is there a God? Does man need a God to be good? What does it mean to be a good man, what's the meaning of good?
The book stays with you long after you have finished it.