harish p i

Algorithms To Live By: The Computer Science Of Human Decisions is a book written by Brian Christian and Tom Griffiths, that tries to compare human decision making with algorithms developed by engineers for the efficient running of computer systems. The books points out several daily life cases where algorithmic logic can be employed for decision making. Algorithms are basically a series of steps that solve a problem, which is what we do in our life too, sometimes consciously, like when we assemble a furniture using instructions or many times unconsciously, like when we plan a shopping trip across multiple shops.

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The book consists of a torrent of wise cracks and jokes about post racial US society. As a novel, it doesn't have a strong structure or plot. The whole book gives you a feeling of watching a very long stand-up act about racism. Several of the jokes and observations are ingenious. The author deliberately avoids any meaningful characterisation and keeps them all two dimensional caricatures. Instead of weakening the novel, it makes you not to care for them and concentrate on the rants of the protagonist, which is actually the strong point of the book.

I feel the intention of the book is to criticise the attitude of modern society to avoid discussing of racial difference altogether. The author tries to put forward a view that it is better to go back to the old ways of segregation if there is no atmosphere to openly discuss and agree on racial differences. It is more difficult for the minor ethnicities to live in a society that obliterate it's identity and makes it conform, rather than giving it space to develop its culture. In the novel we can see that segregation leads to better performance of students and general uplifting of the quality of living. 

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http://diaryofaragingbull.blogspot.com/2017/01/the-sellout-by-paul-beatty-loose.html

Individual stories are good. The atmospheric horror that the author builds and the final pay off is wonderful. But it is a task to read the whole book at a go. These stories were written in several magazines over the course of decades and these are meant to be read like that. Maybe one story every month or so. I tried to read the whole book at a go and it severely hampered the experience. But there is no denying that Lovecraft crafts great stories...

I read the greatest satirical piece called The Good Soldier Svejk, long back and was amazed by the wit and callousness it displayed. And then I heard Catch 22 being compared with it. I decided to read it then. But I couldn't get hold of a copy since it was before ebooks became popular.

Meanwhile I read another novel by Heller titled Something Happened and was thoroughly dissappointed by it. It took another couple of years and recommendations from online forums to try Catch 22.

My verdict: The second greatest satirical piece that I read...