Category: Non-Fiction

Practical Classics by Kevin Smokler

Posted November 28, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Non-Fiction / 2 Comments

Title: Practical Classics (Goodreads)
Author: Kevin Smokler
Published: Prometheus Books, 2013
Pages: 320
Genres: Non-Fiction
My Copy: Paperback

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository, Kindle (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

Classics have a lot to say about life, the problem is the ones that are forced upon us during high school are normally hated or forgotten about. Teachers pick books that are designed to teach important lessons as well as develop critically reading skills. Kevin Smokler has decided to reread those classics and try to tell the reader why we should reread them.

Practical Classics: 50 Reasons to Reread 50 Books You Haven’t Touched Since High School is a collection of essays that often remind the reader what these classics have to offer but told in a very accessible and humours ways. I’m not sure where I first heard about this book, I want to say Books on the Nightstand but I can’t be too sure. I’ve always had an interest in classics and what is assigned in English classes around the place.

The only book I remember studying in High School was Romeo and Juliet and I have to admit I never read it, we ended up watching the movie instead; the Baz Luhrmann version was just released. So I never had a chance to learn about the classics and reading critically. These are new skills I’m still developing. When I suddenly gained an interest in reading and education and have often spent time thinking about what books I would want to teach (see this old post where I pick some books to teach).

Out of the 50 books in this novel; I think I only read a small portion of them so Smokler has really destroyed my TBR list with so many more novels. Not that it really is his fault; I will probably read most of them anyway. I’m interested in knowing why some of these books were chosen, I couldn’t work that out at times and really want to learn more about how they pick the books. Kevin Smokler stated that he reread the books he was assigned in high school and then consulted friends, teachers, etc. to get a nice round 50.

This doesn’t help answer the question I had but it was probably the most practical way to pick books. I’m just fascinated in the idea of studying literature and the process behind deciding what to teach. I’m taking the time to work through an English Lit course and I hope it doesn’t squash my passion for the topic to continue further in. I would love to know if there were books that could help satisfy my curiosity; I will continue to search for them.

I wasn’t much of a non-fiction reader for a long time (in fact I’ve only been a reader since 2009), but books about books are my newfound interest. Kevin Stoker’s book really was a fascinating read and I want people to recommend me some more non-fiction books that will help. Stoker mentioned two in his book that I am to pick up and I hope some of the readers of this will give me some more. If you are interested in learning why classics are important, or you are just interested in books about books, this is a nice addition.

The Know-It-All by A.J. Jacobs

Posted November 27, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Non-Fiction / 2 Comments

Title: The Know-It-All (Goodreads)
Author: A. J. Jacobs
Narrator: Geoffrey Cantor
Published: Simon & Schuster, 2004
Pages: 389
Genres: Non-Fiction
My Copy: Audiobook

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A.J. Jacobs has noticed an ever widening gap left from graduating from an Ivy League education. His solution, to read the entire Encyclopaedia Britannica, from A to Z. Follow A.J. as he works his way through all 32 volumes, that’s 33 thousand pages and 44 million words. His wife thinks it’s a waste of time, his friends believe he has lost his mind, but follow this unconventional task in this memoir.

I have read an A.J. Jacobs memoir before; I read “Year of Living Biblically: One Man’s Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible” and found it really entertaining. This task sounded really interesting, I’m interested in the things people do to increase their pretentious levels. I’m not sure I will ever take up a task like reading the Encyclopaedia, especially with easy to access to Wikipedia.

Knowledge has interested me, and the way to obtain more knowledge is fascinating. The full title of this book is The Know-It-All: One Man’s Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World; A.J. Jacobs documents the journey in this hilarious memoir. Not only do you get little snippets of facts that he found interesting but you get a look at his life. I really enjoyed the social impact reading the Encyclopaedia had; you watch his pretentious levels rise but you also watch his social skills fall. Obviously people don’t like being corrected, or want to hear weird related facts but I can’t help thinking that I would do the same thing as well.

A.J. Jacobs is quite a character and reading about the ways he tries to put his newfound knowledge into practise was really interesting. From going to a chess club, a crossword tournament and Who Wants To Be a Millionaire, Jacobs tries all sorts of ways to practise often with hilarious effects. Why take the test to join Mensa if you are already in Mensa; why not? Although A.J. Jacobs was entertaining, I really found his dad so much more interesting; he was fascinating.

I love books about books and humorous memoirs about learning, so this was right up my alley. A.J. Jacobs got the balance between trivia and real life. Following Jacobs and his wife as they try to get pregnant and I felt relief when they finally conceived. I’m curious if there are more entertaining memoirs like this worth reading, maybe a year reading classics or just novels, something similar. I think I need to read more books like this.

Perv: The Sexual Deviant in All of Us by Jesse Bering

Posted November 17, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Non-Fiction / 2 Comments

Title: Perv: The Sexual Deviant in All of Us (Goodreads)
, 2013
Pages: 288
Buy: Amazon, Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

Jesse Bering, award-winning columnist and psychologist, wants to talk about perversions. We are deviants in one form or another; we may not be paedophiles, or into voyeurism and exhibitionism but there maybe something in our past we rather not discuss. In Perv, Jesse Bering looks at the psychology of having a fetish outside the norm and compares it to the difficulties he faced growing up in the 70s and 80s as a gay man.

This is an interesting book; it doesn’t condone sexual abuse or committing a sex crime. This rather looks at the psychology of paraphilia’s and makes the reader think about it in a different light. Just because someone has a fetish for something unusual doesn’t make them any less human. Bering looks at cultural thought, imprinting, conditioning and compares them to his own struggles as a homosexual.

While he looks at things like zoophiles, paedophiles and bestiality, he also looks at other perversions. Cross dressing, bondage, sadism and tries to get the reader to accept people as human. Just because they have this desire doesn’t mean they are committing crimes, these people are struggling and dealing with the guilt. As Bering states, sometimes they often feel like they have three options in life; depressive sleep, being institutionalised or suicide. Neither of these solutions seems effective at solving the problem.

I thought I had a decent understanding of the GSM (Gender and/or sexual minority or LGBT if you prefer) lifestyle but this just throws so many questions. I’m not comparing GSM with paedophilia, I’m just saying that the psychology of sex is so complicated and how can you treat people with paraphilia without a decent grasp on it. Especially a paraphilia that was so rare that no one bothered to find the Greek name for it.

There wasn’t much about paraphilia’s as I wanted; I was hoping to learn more about these ‘out of the norm’ sexual preferences. Not because I want to make fun of them, the whole thing is just fascinating. My favourite paraphilia discovered from this book is auto-plushophilia (look it up). I think this book looked at paraphilia’s in a new light, I hope this will help me understand them a little better and make it easier to accept them. I now think the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders approach to paraphilia’s are very dated and destructive. If psychologists don’t approach the treatment of these people struggling in a more accepting and human way then these people will never get the help they are seeking.

You Are Not So Smart by David McRaney

Posted November 13, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Non-Fiction / 2 Comments

Title: You Are Not So Smart (Goodreads)
Author: David McRaney
Narrator: Don Hagen
Published: Gotham, 2011
Pages: 301
Genres: Non-Fiction
My Copy: Audiobook

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We all believe we are rational and logical beings but just how accurate is that? You Are Not So Smart explores a range of different psychological and sociological ideas to show how much we don’t know. From cognitive biases, confirmation biases to the spotlight effect this book explores many ideas in a light hearted and accessible way.

I don’t know much about psychology but this book really gave me an interesting insight into cognitive biases. This is what I would call pop psychology; little pieces of information to think about without going into great detail. I never read the You Are Not So Smart blog but this book seemed interesting and I was curious about how the mind works.

Now that I’ve read this book, I have started listening to the You Are Not So Smart podcast, but haven’t read much of the blog. From what I can see, every chapter is a blog post, same format, same style and word for word. Makes it easy to write a book and if you are passionate about a topic it seems to work well.

The book started off really bland for me, I thought I would struggle to get through the book but then I became accustomed to the style. Then I was fascinated and couldn’t stop talking and thinking about what I learnt. As many people know, I have this blog to blog about my autodidactic adventures. It is weird; I thought going to university would give me more to blog about but it didn’t. This book has given me some good posts, and an interest in psychology.

I’m beginning to see the appeal to non-fiction, if it is fascinating, gets me thinking and gives me more blog posts from Knowledge Lost, then I’m happy. I’m going to try to read more non-fiction and I’m hoping to learn more about psychology. Yet another category to add to the blog that has been neglected for far too long.

This is easy to read and, as I said, took me a little while to get use to but I’m a fan. I’ll even read his next book; even if it is the same. I’ve been listening to the podcast and it has given me a few other books to read. Including the book I’ll be reviewing next, Perv: The Sexual Deviant in All of Us (review in a few days). Pop psychology, told in an easy and sometimes humorous way, but then again isn’t that what pop psychology is meant to be?

Paddle Your Own Canoe by Nick Offerman

Posted November 7, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Humour, Non-Fiction / 3 Comments

Title: Paddle Your Own Canoe (Goodreads)
Author: Nick Offerman
Narrator: Nick Offerman
Published: Penguin, 2013
Pages: 320
Genres: Humour, Non-Fiction
My Copy: Audiobook

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Nick Offerman is best known for playing Ron Swanson on Parks and Recreation. This is his first memoir where he muses about life, manliness, wood work and how to best grill meat. Find out about Offerman’s childhood in small town Minooka, Illinois, his love of the theatre, his love of wood work, his wife Megan Mullally and the deadpan comedic style that made him a star.

If you are a Parks and Recreation fan, and in particular a Ron Swanson fan, then this is the book for you. Just to be clear my favourite character is April. Most of Ron Swanson’s quirks and history are taken right out of Nick Offerman’s life so it is almost like learning about the history of the Pawnee Parks Department director.

I got the audiobook of this and I highly recommend you do the same as Offerman narrates this himself. So it feels like Ron Swanson is narrating the book and then you get that Swansonesque chuckle when he tells a joke or a funny story. Listening to Ron Swanson was the best part of the book and I was actually interested in Offerman’s life.

Paddle Your Own Canoe goes further than just talking about Offerman’s life; he also talks about his personal philosophies and what he considers to be the real makings of a man. There is a lot of talk about equality, treating everyone equal, no matter religion, sexuality and so on. It was really interesting to listen to him talk about respect and not being an asshole. I was really impressed with his views on life. not all of them, but he seemed like a really down to earth and stable guy.

When he talks about Megan Mullally is one of my favourite parts. The love he has for his wife and the respect he shows her is beautiful. He talks about their courtship and their marriage and it is all so wonderful I don’t think I could bare it if they ever separated. He is a little sleazy and even tells the reader to Google Megan Mullally’s breasts, but over all you can see how much he adores her.

I didn’t think I would enjoy reading a memoir of an actor, especially a comedian but I thought this was wonderful. I wonder if reading a memoir of a really amazing actor would be as good. This is light hearted, fascinating and surprising. I never thought Nick Offerman would have such a love for the theatre but now I want to see his deadpan style on the stage. Fans of the show or Offerman will love this; I’m not sure about everyone else.

Murder in Mississippi by John Safran

Posted October 14, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Non-Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: Murder in Mississippi (Goodreads)
Author: John Safran
Published: Penguin, 2013
Pages: 304
Genres: Non-Fiction
My Copy: ARC from Netgalley

Buy: Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

When John Safran was filming Race Relations he was going to include a segment where he announced at The Spirit of America Awards that Mississippi’s most notorious white supremacists Richard Barrett has an African heritage. This was no stretch as all bloodlines will eventually lead back to an African ancestor but the threat of legal action meant it was never aired. A year later this white supremacist was murdered and the killer African American. Safran heads back to Mississippi to find out just what happened.

I’ve been a fan of John Safran’s documentary series l highly recommend John Safran Verse God if you have never experienced his style. He is not afraid to push the boundaries and his mind works in an interesting way. This makes for great documentaries that are funny, entertaining, informative and will leave you thinking. So when I found out he wrote a true crime book, I needed to read it.

This isn’t just a standard true crime book either, this is part memoir. You get to learn about what happened to Richard Barrett and befriending the accused, but you get to read about Safran’s journey too. From the filming of the segment to deciding to write this book you will follow John Safran as he learns what happens and tries to work out how to write a True Crime book.

Written in the style that John Safran’s documentaries follows, Murder in Mississippi is part true crime and part memoir. I enjoyed the memoir side more than learning about the crime, I liked following Safran’s train of thought as he tried to work out the best way to approach the research and execution of the book.

John Safran’s writing style is a little weak but I didn’t expect a masterpiece for a first book. Hiss style feels more visual focused and might have worked better as a documentary but I still enjoyed the read. The journey is fascinating and Safran’s unique style was what made the book work. Fans of documentaries, John Safran or true crime, I think you might enjoy this one as well.

Golden Parasol by Wendy Law-Yone

Posted September 25, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Non-Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: Golden Parasol (Goodreads)
Author: Wendy Law-Yone
Published: Chatto & Windus, 2013
Pages: 320
Genres: Non-Fiction
My Copy: Paperback

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Ed Law-Yone was the proprietor of The National In Burma 1962 while there was a military coup. His daughter Wendy Law-Yone was left with the manuscript of his father’s auto-biography and asked to tell his story. Golden Parasol is the memoir of the daughter of a Burmese journalist, political prisoner and revolutionary and follows her memories of her father, imprisonment and escape from the country.

I’m not much of a non-fiction reader, as much as I try, and while this isn’t a topic that interests me, I’m still glad to have read it. Wendy Law-Yone is a novelist and her memoir of her father’s life reads like a novel which really helped me to get through this book I don’t know much about Burma (now known as Myanmar) but now I know a little about the coup in 1962 (also suspect a CIA conspiracy).

Ed Law-Yone seemed to be a complex and colourful character, and if his daughter makes you question his character a little bit, chances are there was something off about him. What he did in the effort to bring democracy to Burma was extraordinary but that doesn’t mean he was a good man. I got the sense that Wendy was a little angry towards him. I’m not saying that he was a bad man but reading between the lines maybe there was a little bit of bitterness between the two; maybe a little neglect or annoyance towards all the time she spent at the newspaper.

When I read a memoir or biography (what’s the difference?) I tend to take what is written with a little grain of salt. I try to work out what might have been left out; I just wonder what secrets lay behind the writing. I really like how chapter 2 started, with some text from Ed’s manuscript and Wendy’s comments in-between (almost a little playful or sarcastic) and was a little disappointed that this tactic was abandoned but I think that would have made for a more difficult read.

Golden Parasol may not be the type of book I normally pick up and I didn’t think I would enjoy this one. I was interested in the narrative and how easy the author made this to read. I’m glad to have read this one, it wasn’t fantastic but it was an interesting insight. My struggle with non-fiction continues, I think I would be better off reading topics I’m interested in instead of something like Golden Parasol.

Death in the Afternoon by Ernest Hemingway

Posted August 30, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Non-Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: Death in the Afternoon (Goodreads)
Author: Ernest Hemingway
Published: Scribner, 1932
Pages: 416
Genres: Non-Fiction
My Copy: eBook

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Death in the Afternoon is a non-fiction book by Ernest Hemingway that explores the ceremony and traditions of Spanish bullfighting. Looking at the history and the culture behind bullfighting, the book also explores the dangers and fears being faced. Still considered one of the best books ever written about bullfighting, Death in the Afternoon explores the sport by one of its aficionados.

This is an interesting book, not something I would read normally but I did enjoy it. While I am morally opposed to bullfighting I didn’t have any really knowledge of the sport and culture behind it. So I went into this book with an open mind and a little hesitant. I had never had a good experience with Hemingway in the past; granted I’ve only read one of his novels (The Old Man and the Sea) but it was enough to never go back. I know this is not a good reason not to return but I have to admit I did enjoy the writing styles.

Ernest Hemingway has a very descriptive writing style which makes for some interesting insights; but sometimes too much. I get the impression that he is using humour in some of his writing but it’s so obscure that it either goes over my head or is just downright weird. I know Hemingway was a rather unusual man and had an interesting life but he isn’t someone that I think I will ever understand or connect with in any way. While I’m against bullfighting, Hemingway seems to be an advocate towards it and often wants it to be more violent and deadly.

You have to understand that Ernest Hemingway is an arrogant, sexist, pompous ass and it often comes through in his writing, so you have to take everything he says with a huge grain of salt. I found myself disagreeing with him all too often but still interested in what he was saying. I went into this book knowing that Hemingway and I weren’t going to get along at times, which was lucky because I was ready to throw out any of his opinions that didn’t align with mine. I did find it interesting how he kept using bullfighting as a metaphor for art and Spain; I don’t know if I agree with this but he seemed was be determined to make this point.

While I’m still opposed to bullfighting, I now have a whole lot more information about the topic; possibly too much. Hemingway’s writing style was enough to make me willing to try something else of his (if I find something good) and this was an interesting and different reading experience. I don’t read enough non-fiction, let alone travel or sports writing so this was a book way out of left field. I’m determined to read more non-fiction now and I hope that I manage to get through at least one a month. Also interesting to see how this review turned out; I’m never know how to approach a non-fiction review and I think I did alright here.

The Lost City of Z by David Grann

Posted August 16, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Non-Fiction / 2 Comments

Title: The Lost City of Z (Goodreads)
Author: David Grann
Published: Knopf Doubleday, 2009
Pages: 351
Genres: Non-Fiction
My Copy: Library Book

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository, Kindle (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

The Lost City of Z tells the story of Percy Fawcett, a legendary British explorer who disappeared in 1925 along with his son looking for an ancient lost city in the Amazon. For decades explorers, archaeologists and scientists have tried to find any evidence of this lost city of El Dorado which Fawcett has called Z. it is believed that over 100 people have perished or disappeared in this search in David Grann explores this topic in the book The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon.

While my wife was away in Chile and Brazil I thought I would read a book set in that continent so after a bit of research and cross checking with what my library had I decided on David Grann’s The Lost City of Z. Maybe not the best book to read while she was away but I want to read more non-fiction and this sounded really interesting. For centuries Europeans believed the Amazon concealed the glittering kingdom of El Dorado and they obsessed with it. Those who did go searching for El Dorado often disappeared or died. The mysteries of the Amazon remained mysteries because the explorers didn’t understand what was in the uncharted jungles of Brazil.

Percy Fawcett has been referred to as a “Nietzschean explorer” spouting “eugenic gibberish” so it was interesting to read about his obsession with finding this lost city as well as everyone else who were determined to find El Dorado. Exploring an unknown jungle without any idea of what dangerous plants, animals and maybe tribes you find doesn’t sound like a great adventure to me but it was interesting to read about mysteries surrounding these quests. For me this book makes the Amazon sound really dangerous; many disappearing or dying and some even going insane but I was fascinated by the book and enjoyed reading it (even though my wife was in Brazil at the time).

I’m never really sure how to write a review for a non-fiction book but I hope I gave you enough information and expressed my thoughts well enough for this book. I think David Grann wrote this book in a really accessible way but at times I felt like he idolised Percy Fawcett; like he was enlightened where others call him a Nietzschean explorer, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing at all. A book that took me out of my comfort zone and I’m thankful for that. The book gets bonus points for referencing and endnotes; I might not have used them but I respect a non-fiction book more if it offers me references to back up what it is saying.

The Monsters by Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler

Posted May 18, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Non-Fiction / 2 Comments

Title: The Monsters (Goodreads)
Author: Dorothy Hoobler, Thomas Hoobler
Published: Back Bay Books, 2006
Pages: 400
Genres: Non-Fiction
My Copy: Personal Copy

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

It was a dark and stormy night on the shores of Lake Geneva, 1816. You’ve heard the story beforbe; Lord Byron challenges his friends to see who can come up with the best ghost story. Among the people include Percy Bysshe Shelley, his lover Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, Mary’s stepsister Claire Claremont and Byron’s physician, John William Polidori. Two novels were born that very night; Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley’s (née Godwin) Frankenstein and John William Polidori’s The Vampyre. The evening begat a curse, too. Within a few years of Frankenstein’s publication, nearly all of those involved met untimely deaths.

First of all I want to point out that authors of this book Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler don’t actually believe this was a curse. Well at least I hope they don’t, this is a little gimmick to help sell the book and I think they just wanted to explore the interesting fact that they did all die young. This book is purely a biography on Mary Shelley that focuses on the night in 1816 and the novel Frankenstein. I was hoping for something about struggling to write something as great as Frankenstein or how the novel has been destroyed by pop culture.

The book starts out with the life of William Godwin and Mary Wollstonecraft, the famous philosopher and feminist parents of Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley. The two had very different personalities and they seemed like a very odd couple but I think they really complemented each other. Sure, they had their problems but nothing like their daughter.

This brings us to the bulk of the book, Mary Shelley and the young romantics. These were the original rock stars and their lives, no soap opera will ever come close to the drama and complexity as the real lives of the romantics. I picked up this book to learn about these poets after reading A Treacherous Likeness and I wanted to know more about them. This was a very accessible biography, which focuses primarily on Mary Shelley but it gives you a great insight into her life. I don’t pretend to fully understand the Romantics, they are way to complex but I feel I have a better knowledge into their lives.

My interest in the Romantics has gotten stronger thanks to The Monsters by Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler. I have a few other books I plan to finish off in on the topic and I doubt I’ll stop there. I love the quotes and the referencing in this biography; I’ve often found that I wonder about the source of information in biographies that don’t reference so it was so handy to have that reference.

While this book does primary focus on Mary, it was nice to learn a little more of Percy Bysshe Shelley, Lord Byron, Claire Claremont and John William Polidori. I didn’t previously know the story of the original publication of The Vampyre; I found it fascinating and heart breaking for John William Polidori. It is always great to find new stories about these amazing talented people.

One thing I liked about this biography, especially after reading A Treacherous Likeness, is the fact that it didn’t try to sway the reader’s opinions; it stuck to facts and left it to the readers to make up their own mind. This was a refreshing change from the opinionated A Treacherous Likeness and I really enjoyed the experience of learning more about these poets. I’m sure there are better biographies on Mary Shelley out there but The Monsters is worth checking out as well.