M. Woot

LOVE IT!

Revisado: 10-15-23

I LOVE IT! I'd give 10 stars if I could. This is the best pop science book to date (in fact, it may be the only one?) exploring how our emotions are shaped by our socio-cultural contexts rather than being innate, universal constants (as the field of psychology would have us believe). I love that Mesquita discusses the concept of cultural fit and how particular cocktails of emotion can be optimal in one context but detrimental in another - I personally find this to be one of the most fascinating and difficult aspects of the human experience. Though research-based, this book verges on self-help for me and puts so much of my emotional life in perspective. I am so glad it exists!

Mesquita writes for a fairly general audience and simplifies some of these topics a bit, but she still manages to include quite a bit of nuance in a digestible format. She stays true to the body of research in this field and references it frequently (rather than offering her personal opinion as theory without reference, as many pop science writers do). I'd recommend this to basically all humans, and particularly humans that work with others' emotions (like therapists, social workers, and other caring professions).

For anyone interested in other quintessential popular reading for the topic of "psychological anthropology," I also recommend:

Crazy Like Us: The Globalization of the American Mind by Ethan Watters
Do Parents Matter?: Why Japanese Babies Sleep Soundly, Mexican Siblings Don't Fight, and American Families Should Just Relax by Robert and Sarah LeVine

Lastly, I read this on audiobook and the narration was very good. I often find non-fiction narrators to be too stiff, and while this was on the dryer side of things, I thought Mikhaila Aaseng struck a nice balance.

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Fantastic

Revisado: 10-15-23

Really enjoyed! The atmosphere of the sandy dunes was captivating and I loved the absurdist existential themes - plenty of food for thought. I felt Abe's fictional application of absurdist philosophy was much better executed than anything I've read by Camus (so far) as the plot worked quite well on its own. I was dying to know what would happen to the man and the woman! The suspense and mystery of it all worked well for me even if it was a bit of a slow burn at times.

There were some... surprisingly pornographic bits that I hadn't expected and I felt awkward encountering them at the gym (listened to the audiobook which was very well-narrated). That said, while I found them a bit much, I suspect they did contribute to some of the more philosophical angles of the book. I did also appreciate the meta-literary point that venereal diseases are the opposite of soap operas - I do appreciate a good anti-soap-opera.

I chose this as a fast and easy read to help me get out of a reading slump and it delivered!

Edited to add: would pair well with The Hole, which I'm assuming was inspired by this book.

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Fun read!

Revisado: 10-15-23

Fun read!

Things I liked:

Unique, atmospheric setting - the Mississippi and its steamboats. This was a rich and absorbing world to inhabit.

Historical elements - the plot tracks historical changes (indirectly) from the antebellum period through the reconstruction era. I'm not sure how accurate the details were, but it was interesting to contemplate what the American civil war might have been like for these ancient creatures of the night.

Gothic throwbacks - there were some fun references particularly to Dracula and Frankenstein, along with some of the classic questions of the genre: What does it mean to be human? What does it mean to be a monster?

Strong characterization and a surprisingly tender relationship between the two main characters, both of whom were very well-developed. I loved the scene when Abner Marsh (a gruff steamboat captain) decided that poetry wasn't so bad after all. I also really appreciated the idea of a "vampire" abolitionist as a character (or are they vampires???).

The writing - this is my first read by GRRM and I can see why people say he's a great writer, although I'm not sure how I would describe his style here - it was very clear, easy to follow, and enjoyable to read (even the parts about steamboats).

The narrator of the audiobook - I saw someone else commented that they would've preferred a narrator with a southern (US) accent but I thought the Scottish narrator was amazing! I think the main vampire was supposed to be Scottish, so this made sense to me, plus I love Scottish accents so I guess I might be biased. That said, the narrator used a range of accents for different characters (including Southern accents that weren't completely butchered) and he was very consistent. In fact, I think he may have made the book for me - it was a pleasure to listen to.

Things I didn't care for:

Lack of well-developed, stand-alone, female characters.

The good guy vs bad guy story arc - the villain was pretty simplistic.

The use of the N-word was... a lot - this is not an audiobook you'd want to listen to in public.

Things I'm neutral about:

I'm guessing there was some allegory going on but honestly, I just listened to this as a surface read and it still worked really well. I don't think the allegory was too deep, but I'd probably want to give it a more thorough re-read before I could say for sure.

Overall, I really liked it and looked forward to reading. It was an easy world to get absorbed into and, I think, an interesting contribution to the history of the genre.

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Meh

Revisado: 10-15-23

Huh, I thought I would like this a lot better. I found it very meh. I feel like the universe had so much potential (post-apocalyptic Oregon), but the writing lacked the kind of descriptive oomph that would've really grabbed me. Despite the author mentioning Oregon frequently, this felt like it could've been set anywhere. I found the characterization to be meh and the plot as well, outside of a few interesting plot twists that later got dropped. The middle part of the book was the fairly engaging but I had lost so much interest by the end that I'm not entirely sure what happened. And I don't really feel interested enough to go back and figure it out. The audiobook was also meh - the narration was good but not great. Overall - meh.

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Interesting story, understated narrator

Revisado: 10-15-23

While this is mostly about the Klondike Gold Rush, it very much complements my newfound curiosity with all things polar expedition. It was interesting to read about the events from a dog's perspective. I enjoyed Buck's musings on culture shock and adaptation from civilization to wilderness, although they were admittedly not the most nuanced imaginings of "dog culture" (they were reminiscent of the noble savage trope to me). I enjoyed learning about the practice of dog-sledding and how different teams of humans approached the dogs.

I wasn't as enthralled by the parts about physical labor, beatings, and quarreling amongst dogs and their "masters." I wish the setting has been a little more prominent with lusher descriptions. The narrator of the audiobook was quite understated which I appreciated, but I can see how for some that might translate as "boring." Overall, a short, easy read that you might enjoy if you love dogs, the "wild," or the historical context of the gold rush.

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Terrible narrator, mediocre story.

Revisado: 05-19-22

If you can bear the monotonous narrator, save yourself the trouble and skip to the last third.

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Not my cup of tea

Revisado: 04-28-22

I didn't love it, but I also didn't hate it, overall I felt it was okay. It felt like a mish mash of all the best sci-fi/dystopian/speculative fiction, with hints of black mirror, 1984, brave new world, Philip K Dick, etc etc, and I like all of those ideas so it was at least mildly entertaining. But honestly most of those ideas were already done really well in their original format and this felt like a worse version of them.

I wish the author had narrowed the scope and explored maybe just a handful of these ideas in depth - for instance, I thought the idea about the self-fulfilling algorithm was really neat and it was one of the few ideas in the book that was new to me, so I think I might've enjoyed the book more if he'd focused mainly on that in depth. Overall I enjoyed it but I thought the author was overambitious.

Also, the narrator really grated on my nerves and I found her to be way over the top. I guess that does fit the over the top humor of the book, but it often just felt like too much to me and I didn't look forward to listening. The narrator came across, to me, like an actor that hadn't fully committed and felt anxious and tried to overcompensate for this by being over-dramatic.

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Classic with terrible narrator

Revisado: 05-21-21

I think I'd give 4/5 stars for the book itself, but the narrator (Ron Rifkin) kind of ruined it for me. One of the worst narrators I've heard in a while, particularly in his rendering of children's dialogue. I'm not sure if if the characters were written as awful, whiny, pedantic brats or it it was just the narrator's voice. Either way, most of the main characters were kind of ruined for me, hence only 4/5 stars for the book. I'd give 1/5 stars for the narration (which was often drowned out by music), but will round up to 3/5 stars for the audio version of the book as I still liked it despite the flaws. I really enjoyed the plot, the world-building, and the idea of the book. I can see why it's a classic utopia/dystopia.

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Thought-provoking yet enjoyable

Revisado: 03-27-21

I really enjoyed this! It was a captivating adventure and I loved the post-post-apocalyptic setting of sorts (overcoming a disaster in the world that's been established after apocalyptic events). The narrative device of a frame story being told to us, the people from the past, made for some thought-provoking moments, although it did veer dangerously close to becoming a gimmick at times. The world-building was very well done, and the characters (both human and canine) were believable and complex.

The main reason I'm deducting a star is because the plot lagged in the middle. There were several "how-will-they-ever-make-it-out-of-this-one"-style-moments in a row which got a bit repetitive. I guess that comes with the adventure genre to some extent, though, which is why it's usually not my favorite. That said, there was a brilliant plot twist (two, actually) that I didn't see coming - if you like plot twists, I'd definitely recommend!

Lastly, the narration (by the author) was easy to follow, consistent, and relaxed - not overly dramatized, no over-the-top accents or emoting. Overall, an enjoyable and thought-provoking read - a hard combination to pull off!

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So good!

Revisado: 12-11-20

I loved the professor's engaging narration which was extremely easy to pay attention to. I've long been a fan of utopian/dystopian lit and this was a fascinating exploration of some of my favorites and their appeal, as well as a great introduction to many more works which are now on my reading list. She struck a great balance between theoretical depth and keeping it lay friendly. Highly recommended if you enjoy the genre or just fiction in general!

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