Category: Books

A Gentleman in Moscow

Sublime, in terms of writing and characters. When Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov is sentenced to house arrest (“house” here being the Hotel Metropol) on 21st June 1922, it’s difficult to imagine the remaining 400+ pages being anything other than depressing. But the Count is probably a living embodiment of Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations, and the story that follows shows “that by the smallest of one’s actions one can restore some sense of order to the world.” An absolutely wonderful read, and in my list of all-time favourites.

The Algebra of Happiness: Finding the equation for a life well lived

Scott Galloway is famous for his “roasts” of tech companies and unicorns. This is obviously a different topic, but if you like the tone – blunt towards abrasive – you should enjoy this book too. Though his life has not really been a benchmark for happiness (as he admits), the experience has given him perspectives on what happiness could be. It’s not a typical “happiness” book, but profundity and the profanity coexist to make an interesting read.

Uncharted: Big Data as a Lens on Human Culture

The premise is excellent. Our consumption, sharing and creation of data could tell us a lot about our society and the evolution of our culture in different parts of the world. The problem is, the book is based solely on the authors’ experiments with datasets using Google Books Ngram Viewer. 30 million books digitized by Google. A lot of books, but still a small subset. The book doesn’t match the expectations set by the title, but is still an interesting read.

How Emotions Are Made

I found this book a refreshing perspective, when compared to the other books that I have read on the subject. From the system of the brain and the construction of emotions to the subject of free will, there are a bunch of interesting lines of thought. The understanding of emotions, and our ability/inability to control them have implications on a lot of things from our own daily behaviour to how we deliver justice as a society. While the topics are complex, the book has an excellent narrative style and is very accessible.