Words on the move

Title: Words on the move: Why English Won’t—and Can’t—Sit Still (Goodreads link)
Author: John McWhorter
Genre: Non-fiction
Published: September 2016
My Rating: 4 on 5

It is fascinating to read books about languages and to learn how language has evolved with time. It is as if the languages and words have their own timeline and laws of evolution. McWhorter’s book satiates the curiosity of any linguist books’ lover by packing it full of fun facts and tidbits about how English words have changed over time.

As the title states, McWhorter sets off the book with providing examples of how words take on new meanings and change forms and pronunciation over time. He starts off with a pet peeve of mine – people using literally, when they don’t mean it (“I am literally dying of thirst”) and seems to be totally cool with how people use it. By the end of this chapter, McWhorter had me convinced that it is perfectly okay to use it this way.

Another thing he changed my mind about is the trend of using nouns as verbs. It used to really irk me when people in my last organization used “ask” and “solve” as a noun. “What’s the ask” to mean “What’s the request?” Again, McWhorter questions my opinion by asking how I am okay with using the words “work” and “walk” as verbs as these words started off as nouns initially, but turned into verbs with usage.

While I enjoyed most of the book, I found the chapter on regional accents a tiny bit boring. This could have been because of the fact that I am not a native English speaker and I don’t really get the nuances of stressing different syllables.

McWhorter, being a linguist, has written a fascinating and enjoyable book. The topic is definitely interesting, but the writing kept me hooked too.

I thought of myself as a pedant, but this book mellowed me. I no longer cringe when people say “I literally blew up”. And I have started asking my colleagues, “What is the ask?”

If languages fascinate you, read this book.

The Obesity Code

Title: The Obesity Code: Unlocking the Secrets of Weight Loss (Goodreads link)
Author: Jason Fung
Genre: Non-fiction
Published: March 2016
My Rating: 3.5 on 5

I am sure most of the people on Earth (and may be the neighboring planet too) have already read this book. I am late to the party, partly because of my skepticism about reading yet another diet book and that I thought that this is a passing fad and I don’t need to invest time in reading this. However, when I started reading positive feedback and rave reviews about intermittent fasting from readers, influencers and nutritionists who I follow, I thought it was time to find out what the hype is all about.

I really like the way the book is structured. Dr. Fung does not jump straight into preaching the readers his solution but builds up a story on what the problem is and why it exists. His arguments about the way we think about body weight, metabolism, insulin resistance and diabetes are very convincing. He supports these arguments with ample evidence through clinical studies and research done in the past. It is shocking to see how wrong we humans have got this – I believed that consuming high-fat food caused an increase in cholesterol levels until I read this book. The way we treat diabetes today, by injecting insulin, is the worst thing one could do to a diabetic – and this is still practiced. The concept of body trying to maintain its equilibrium or its set weight explains so well all my struggles through the past decade of gaining all the lost weight back, despite continuing to eat healthy and exercise. My inner voice always blamed me for not having enough will power to see it through, but now I realize it was just my body doing what it is programmed to do.

The second part of the book is dedicated to introducing the reader to the concept of fasting. Dr. Fung delves into the different ways one can fast to create periods of low insulin level in the body to counteract the high insulin levels when we eat. He provides examples of people doing 5:2 (eating normally 5 days, while fasting 2 days a week), 16:8 (16 hours of fasting in a day and 8 hours of eating window) and 48, 72-hour fasting. There are cases of extremes – someone fasting for 362 days straight. While anything beyond a day of fasting sounds hard to me, going days and days without food sounds extreme and harmful. Of course, Dr. Fung claims there is no harm, with a general caution for diabetics to do this under medical supervision.

Having tried the 15:9 (and sometimes 16:8), I must say this diet suits me. Having struggled with digestive issues, sensitive stomach and an ugly flare up of these during my recent Norway trip, I decided to give this diet a try. I skip breakfast and eat my first meal at 12 noon or so. Eat normally for the next 8 hours before my next fasting begins. It was hard the first few days to go without breakfast, but now it feels just natural. I don’t get hunger pangs and can often go beyond 16 hours easily. I thought I would overeat to compensate the lost meal, but surprisingly, I have been eating just the same. I still struggle with cutting out sugar. I love sweets and often end up eating home made laddoos or kheer. I tell myself this is vastly better than eating store-bought cakes and pastries.

This book could have been easily three-fourth its size if Dr. Fung had refrained from repeating the same facts over and over. He tries to give this book a cliffhanger-ish style, by making a grand statement or throwing a question at the end of the chapter, which irked me a bit. I must say, though, that some of the facts and secrets revealed in this book can put a mystery book to shame.

The Miniaturist

Title: The Miniaturist (Goodreads link)
Author: Jessie Burton
Genre: Historical Fiction
Published: July 2014
My Rating: 2 on 5

The Miniaturist is set against the backdrop of the Dutch Golden Age and is about a young woman, Nella Oortman, who marries a wealthy merchant, Johannes Brandt, and moves to Amsterdam. Nella’s marital life has a rocky start as she finds her husband often on long travels and when he is around hardly pays any attention to her. She feels trapped in a house which is supposed to be hers but is being run by Marin, Johannes’s sister. Johannes presents Nella with a cabinet-sized replica of their house as a wedding gift, and she reaches out to a miniaturist to furnish it. The story takes an interesting turn here as the miniaturist’s creations begin to mirror reality. As Nella struggles to come to terms with her fruitless marriage and her crushed dreams, she is shocked as dark secrets about the family are revealed.

The author does a brilliant job of creating a beautiful vibe and atmosphere of Amsterdam of the old times. The author paints a vivid picture of the city’s social life, hierarchy, and simple, yet complex lives the people led. The author uses this book to educate readers about a few Dutch words, dishes and culture. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about the characters. I didn’t find any of the characters credible – Nella, being just eighteen seems too wise for her age, which is unbelievable especially since she was copped in a small village with little exposure to the outside world. Marin, who is supposedly overly religious but goes on to commit one of the gravest sins. But the biggest disappointment is the lack of clarity on who the miniaturist is and how she is able to predict future incidents. The mystery around miniaturist keeps the reader going to know who the miniaturist is but the ending is a major let down.

Despite the flaws of the book, it reads well. There are a few memorable quotes which I treasure.

Growing older, does not seem to make you more certain. It simply presents you with more reasons for doubt.

A lifetime isn’t enough to know how a person will behave.

Pity, unlike hate, can be boxed and put away.

Every woman is the architect of her own fortune.

Even though the book was a disappointment to me, some of these quotes will remain with me. The book was not a complete disappointment after all.

Murder in Major G (Gethsemane Brown Mysteries, #1)

Title: Murder in Major G (Gethsemane Brown Mysteries, #1) (Goodreads link)
Author: Alexia Gordon
Genre: Murder mystery
Published: May 2016
My Rating: 2.5 on 5

Being a music lover, I was drawn in by the title of the book. And was even more delighted when the protagonist happened to be an African-American woman who is a maestra, capable of playing multiple instruments with ease. Unfortunately, the book turned out to be a disappointment with a loose plot, obvious red herrings, complicated character names and humor that didn’t work.

I am not a fan of paranormal elements and the presence of a ghost in the very beginning of this book was a put-down for me. No, I do not read blurbs of the book, so of course I missed noticing this fact before I started reading the book. Protagonist is likeable, but her character could have been developed better. More layers, some more vulnerabilities would have made her more relatable.

This book needs to win an award for the book with the most complicated character names. Some are probably justified as I assume they are typical Irish names, but what’s with the protagonist’s name? She is American! I don’t even know how to pronounce it.

The story and eventual reveal leave a lot to be desired. Readers need to be convinced that the mystery was err.. mysterious but the protagonist is able to crack it with smart thinking. One doesn’t “find clues” by drinking whiskey in a pub or talking to random people. Equally unbelievable is the fact the school goes on to win the music competition! And also the fact almost everyone in the Irish village was committed to a psychiatrics facility at one time. The list goes on.

The book is a quick and easy read. The music references in the book kept me engaged. I really, really wanted this book to work for me, but unfortunately it tried too hard to be cute and charming and failed at it.

Moonflower Murders – Anthony Horowitz

I am hooked to Horowitz’s mystery books. I discovered him by accident and ever since I read the first book, I have been binge reading all his books – Hawthorne, Holmes and Ryeland, though not in the right order. I read his ‘The Twist of a Knife” which is Hawthorne #4, but the wrong order didn’t spoil the fun of reading the book.

This book is a triple bonanza for readers – there are actually three murders and each one is a pleasure to read. The plot of the book is interesting. There is something about connecting murders to the literary world of books, authors and characters. Ryeland is a wonderful character. I like her no-nonsense attitude, kind-but-firm tone and of course, her love for books.

Without getting into the actual story and characters, I will say this was a page turner. Quite a few red herrings, excellent writing, well drawn out characters, an interesting plot make this book a quick and interesting read. It is quite evident Horowitz is a fan of Christie and has even made his author character, Alan Conway, a fan of Christie as well. Horowitz’s style is similar to Christie’s. The same situation is revealed through conversations with various characters and the reader could spot the inconsistencies and solve the mystery. I admit I have never been able to deduce, neither in Christie’s books nor in this one. But I am happy to be pleasantly surprised or shocked by the revelation in the end.

Sadly, I am through all Horowotiz’s books now, unless I want to read Alex Rider series. Hope Horowitz releases his next book soon.

If Nietzsche were a Narwhal – Justin Gregg

Title: If Nietzsche were a Narwhal: What animal intelligence reveals about human stupidity (Goodreads link)
Author: Justin Gregg
Genre: Non-Fiction
Published: August 2022
My Rating: 4 on 5

If the title of the book was intended to be a click bait, it totally worked on me. As I wondered how one could compare a philosopher and a cute animal, the byline of the title had me hooked. As the title suggests, the author, Justin Gregg, imagines how the world would turn out if we humans were as stupid or intelligent as animals. The author has spent many years researching dolphins and provides an authoritative voice when he speaks for the animal kingdom.

The book compares animals and humans on different aspects, each broken down into a chapter: ability to question why, ability to lie and deceive, awareness of death, homosexuality, presence or lack of consciousness or self-awareness and humans’ prognostic myopia. Each chapter starts with a relevant quote from Nietzsche and the author elaborates on this by providing examples and scientific research conducted in this area. The author shares his opinion about whether this ability makes humans superior. More often than not, the author prefers to be on a neutral line by mentioning some of the advantages the ability has given us, but also the damage we have caused because of this.

The book is filled with interesting anecdotes and experiments which provide an insight into the magical world of animals. This book made me realize how fascinating and intelligent animals are and how we little we know about them. While questioning the benefit of being “why specialists”, Gregg shares an experiment in which a group of pigeons were better at identifying cancerous cells than human radiologists. The pigeons may not question why, but they seem to have the ability to detect malignancy better than humans. Does this make pigeons more intelligent?

The chapter on awareness of death was eye-opening for me. The story about Tahlequah, the orca, carrying her dead infant on her back for seventeen as she came to terms with her grief was very touching. I found the chapter on prognostic myopia especially thought-provoking. The author defines prognostic myopia as the human capacity to think about and alter the future coupled with an inability to actually care all that much about what happens in the future. He rants about climate change and how little we all are doing, being well aware of the near consequences of inaction.

I liked the conversational tone of the author and found the book to be an easy and interesting read. The author uses the right balance of stories, experiments and thought provoking questions which keeps the reader engaged throughout the book.

The Music of Bees – Eileen Garvin

I read this book as part of The Reading Circle – a book club at Buchs Bibliothek.

There is something about bees that I find them very fascinating. When I read the title of the book, I was really excited to enter the world of bees yet again. I really enjoyed reading another book with bees in its title – The Secret Life of Bees and based on that experience, I assumed I would love this book too.

The book is about Alice, Jake and Harry who in their individual lives face an obstacle and feel lost in their lives until destiny brings them together. Alice is still recovering from the grief of losing her husband to an accident. Jake is disappointed in himself and life because he lost his legs to a stupid accident and needs to be on a wheelchair for the rest of his life. Harry doesn’t feel belonged in the world as he struggles with his social anxiety issues. Three separate lives, but a common running thread of hitting a major roadblock in their lives. The book goes on to show how these characters come together and how their lives become intertwined.

Of all the three characters, I related to Alice the most. The author’s depiction of Alice’s introversion and her grief feels so real that my heart went out to Alice. I even shed a tear for her when her beautiful relationship with her husband was described. As a woman in a male-dominated field, her struggle to find appreciation in her work life also resonated with me. Her impulsive decisions (inviting Jake over to live with her), fighting spirit (taking on SuproGo head on), her introversion made Alice a very real-like and relatable character. As a rebellious teenager who undergoes a life changing event, Jake’s character tugs at your heart too. I struggled to accept the overnight transformation in his attitude – from a frivolous teenager to a mature, sensible individual. I thoroughly enjoyed his relationship with Alice – what a true form of friendship. Harry’s character was the least likable or relatable to me. I found myself rolling my eyes over some of his actions and thoughts.

Being a beekeeper herself, Eileen adds expertise and authenticity to her description of the world of bees. I was mesmerized all over again with the kind of methodical and orderly life the bees lead. The bees were a constant companion to Alice, buzzing around while the story went on with the characters.

While the characters’ struggle and their journey is believable and relatable, the ending feels too rushed and too-good-to-be-true. The problems are resolved, everything works out in the end, as if in a fairy tale and I found that hard to come to terms with.

This book is a charming, feel-good story about how to find a purpose in life when everything seems bleak. We have all found ourselves in this situation at one time and this books reminds us that there is still hope at the end of the dark tunnel. Apart from the heartrending story, the world of bees add another layer of charm to this book.

Power, for All

Title: Power, for All (Link to Goodreads)
Author: Julie Battilana, Tiziana Casciaro
Genre: Non-Fiction
Published: August 2021
My Rating: 4 on 5

I have to admit I had not heard of this book until I saw this mentioned on the recommended reading list of Tiziana’s course ‘Leading People in Organizations’. Rarely am I given an opportunity to meet an author up close and attend her classes, so I made sure I read this book before I landed in her class. Without knowing the authors behind the book, I read this as any other non-fiction book on corporate culture. But when I met the passionate and morally grounded Tiziana, I realized she embodies everything that this book stands for.

This book is all about power – how it has always had a negative connotation that power corrupts people, how it is assumed to be wielded by the people high above in the hierarchy, and the book tries to shatter these myths by decoupling power from role or title and brings in other factors like having influence by controlling resources that other needs. Power seems unattainable to most of us, but this book breaks the equation of power to its bare bones and provides ample instances of so called ordinary people gaining and wielding power. For instance, the study conducted at a French plant revealed that the most powerful were not the managers in the top run of the hierarchy, but the power rested with the maintenance team who had access to the most valuable resource – fixing broken machines. If machines were broken, it impacted the productivity and the linked pay for every worker. Thus, the team which had sole control over this valuable resource wielded the greatest power.

Gender too makes an appearance in the book, as the authors focus on the struggles of Donatella Versace, who took over as the CEO after her father’s untimely death. When she found no support from the board or her next level leaders, she built up her confidence by finding a group of strong, determined women who were not only her allies, but her critics too. The book quotes a study on how women’s leadership success is influenced by the gender composition of the team and concludes “… to get executive positions with the highest levels of authority and compensation, women need one more thing: an inner circle of close ties with other women.”

Both the authors being academicians, the book is based on years of research and cites many studies, experiments and real-life examples to demonstrate how to gain power, use it well and not let it corrupt you. I had the privilege of being part of the discussions in class about some parts of the book and that elevated the learning to the next level. This is a must-read book for every person, irrespective of one being a manager or a worker or even if one is not in the corporate world.

A Slow Fire Burning

Title: A Slow Fire Burning (Link to Goodreads)
Author: Paula Hawkins
Genre: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller
Published: August 2021
My Rating: 3.5 on 5

A Slow Fire Burning is the latest murder mystery book by Paula Hawkins. I have read her ‘Girl on a Train’ and found it to be an okay read, so picked up her latest book to see how this one is.

The book is about Daniel Sutherland, the guy who is stabbed to death in his houseboat, his aunt Carla, his one-night stand Laura and his mother Angela. The story goes back and forth from the past to the present to reveal background story about the characters and their present actions, which at times makes for a difficult read. And to add to it, there is a book within this book – excerpts from a book written by one of the characters, Theo, who is Carla’s husband and a famous author. On the periphery of all this is Miriam, the fat and ugly woman who works at a bookstore and lives in a houseboat.

All the characters have a troubled past and this is revealed over time as the book meanders from past to present. As the spotlight moves from character to the other, as a reader, you start suspecting every one of them. Though the characters seem isolated from one another, the book slowly reveals how tightly wound they all are. Certain parts of the book are predictable and makes you roll your eyes, but barring that, the book is well written and the mystery well solved. The climax came as no surprise to me. As the story progressed, it was quite obvious who the killer was, but the author made it interesting by introducing different twists and turns into the story. Many secrets get revealed through the story, which keeps you hooked to the book.

I hardly pay attention to the character development or the style of writing when I am reading a mystery book. But, in this book, I had to notice how every main character had a strong history. I couldn’t help developing a soft spot for all the characters – volatile Laura, chronically depressed Irene, melancholic Angela and even the resentful Theo.

This is a quick, well written page turner with a good plot and interesting characters. If you are looking for a quick read for this weekend, you might want to give this a try.

The Biggest Bluff: Maria Konnikova

Title: The Biggest Bluff (Link to Goodreads)
Author: Maria Konnikova
Genre: Non-Fiction
Published In: 2020
My Rating: 3.5 on 5

This is the story of a woman who holds a doctorate degree in psychology and decides to take up poker as a profession. Maria Konnikova is fascinated by human behavior and is even more fascinated by the emotions and behaviors at play in a game of poker. Instead of studying poker players from a distance, she decides to take the plunge herself and dedicates several years of her life being trained under a champion poker player. The outcome of she cashing in a six figure amount is treated more as a secondary goal when compared to the psychological ‘discoveries’ she made.

I have zero interest in poker and before I read this book I had no idea what poker is about. All I knew was a bunch of players sit around a table and wager money until one of them wins. After reading the book, I still can’t say I know the rules better now, but I am wiser by knowing that poker is not about luck or chance alone. It takes skills to win this game, unlike roulette.

I picked up this book because I was intrigued by Konnikova’s discoveries. What does poker teach us about human behavior? Turns out, nothing new which we didn’t know already. The most interesting part of the book was when she worked with Seidel – which increased her self-awareness and helped her identify the cause of her certain actions & reactions and how to control them. Turns out poker face is a myth and we give away lot more through our gestures than our facial expressions.

The book is not a page turner, but not a difficult read either. The story of her journey is told in a flat, monotonous way, but that is acceptable since this book is not a thriller. The book would have read much better if Konnikova had included some suspense and cliff-hangers.

In short, while I enjoyed reading the book, there was a lack of epiphany for me. None of the revelations Konnikova makes left a mark on me. It has been two weeks since I finished reading this book and I can’t recall an incident or a learning which made an impression. I did not take away anything from this book.

A question which often gets asked by readers – should I be familiar with the game of poker to appreciate this book. My answer: it depends. Sorry for the not very helpful answer, but it does depend on the kind of reader you are. Konnikova does give a quick 101 on poker for laypersons like me and a glossary of poker terms at the end of the book (which I skipped). I was okay with not knowing the game in depth as I was focusing more on her the human behavior angle. But, some readers may want to dig deeper to understand every statement the author is making about the situations she finds herself in poker. So, in short: it depends.

If you are looking to transform your poker career and win a six figure cash money, then this book is not going to help you with that. It is not a “How to win big in poker” book. This is just an anecdotal narration of the author of her journey, focusing on her learning, rather than on the big cash prize.