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The influence of modern life on the civil wars, with an emphasis on grievance, faction …
Probably a must-read for anyone trying to understand this geopolitical moment. It is focused on the US, but most of the books observation generalize.
Two time-traveling agents from warring futures, working their way through the past, begin to exchange …
It's that time again…
From the New York Times bestselling author of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, an …
A beautiful reflection on the human condition. And an absolute masterclass in world building. Unlike other fantasy novels, the world is not very deep, but the way it is revealed and layered through the eyes of the protagonist is unlike anything I've read before.
Über kaum ein anderes Land wird in Deutschland so viel geredet und Zu Israel hat …
„Viele Deutsche fühlen zwei Herzen in ihrer Brust schlagen: Wie lässt sich der Widerspruch auflösen zwischen der Verpflichtung gegenüber den Opfern der Shoah, ihren Nachkommen und ihrem Staat Israel auf der einen Seite – und einer modernen linken, postkolonial inspirierten Identität, die sich für die Nachkommen der Kolonisierten in Afrika genauso einsetzen möchte wie für die unterdrückten Palästinenser?“
Mit genau diesem Gefühl und auf der Suche nach einer Antwort auf genau diese Frage habe ich dieses Buch ausgesucht. "Terminally online" höre ich dem internationalen Diskurs auf der einen und den deutschen Diskurs auf der anderen Seite zu, ausgelöst durch den erneuten Krieg in Gaza. Und habe das Gefühl, dass beide Seiten über Strohmänner reden. Und jeweils die von der anderen Seite genannten Positionen beiseite wischen, als Genozidverteidigung auf der einen und Antisemitismus auf der anderen Seite. Und ich möchte diese offen gelassenen Fragen stellen, aber ich weiß nicht, wie.
Mendel …
„Viele Deutsche fühlen zwei Herzen in ihrer Brust schlagen: Wie lässt sich der Widerspruch auflösen zwischen der Verpflichtung gegenüber den Opfern der Shoah, ihren Nachkommen und ihrem Staat Israel auf der einen Seite – und einer modernen linken, postkolonial inspirierten Identität, die sich für die Nachkommen der Kolonisierten in Afrika genauso einsetzen möchte wie für die unterdrückten Palästinenser?“
Mit genau diesem Gefühl und auf der Suche nach einer Antwort auf genau diese Frage habe ich dieses Buch ausgesucht. "Terminally online" höre ich dem internationalen Diskurs auf der einen und den deutschen Diskurs auf der anderen Seite zu, ausgelöst durch den erneuten Krieg in Gaza. Und habe das Gefühl, dass beide Seiten über Strohmänner reden. Und jeweils die von der anderen Seite genannten Positionen beiseite wischen, als Genozidverteidigung auf der einen und Antisemitismus auf der anderen Seite. Und ich möchte diese offen gelassenen Fragen stellen, aber ich weiß nicht, wie.
Mendel redet meiner Meinung nach sehr differenziert über diese Meta-Frage: Wie reden wir über Israel? Er beklagt eine zunehmende Polarisierung und Verhärtung der Positionen und belegt dies auch mit klaren - oft persönlichen - Beispielen aus beiden Richtungen. Und er beklagt, dass der Nahost Konflikt im deutschen Diskurs oft instrumentalisiert wird - mit Beispielen, aus beiden Richtungen. Lösungen zeigt er mir nicht auf, aber zumindest benennt er das Problem, offen und konkret.
Und er redet auch über die Sache selbst. Und während er (verständlicherweise) meiner Wahrnehmung nach dort schon eine deutlichere Position ein nimmt, so schafft er es auch, einige meiner offenen Fragen zu beantworten. Er macht die Unterscheidung zwischen Holocaust-Vergleich und -Gleichsetzung deutlich. Und er zieht eine klare argumentative Linie von der Gleichsetzung mit der Nabka über Antizionismus zu Antisemitismus. Ein Zusammenhang den ich oft gehört, aber selten erklärt bekommen habe.
Insgesamt eine klare Leseempfehlung.
Re-reading for book club
The Eye of the World is a fantasy novel by American writer Robert Jordan, the …
Let's do this again
Traduttore, traditore: An act of translation is always an act of betrayal.
1828. Robin Swift, orphaned by cholera in Canton, …
From T. Kingfisher, the award-winning author of The Twisted Ones, comes What Moves the Dead, …
Not a huge fan of horror, but this is excellently written. Gripping and in a very entertaining style, a page turner you will fly through.
The only criticism I have is the title. It seems to me that most people who would consider themselves “radicals” will (unjustly) consider Elinor Ostrom's positions to be too reformist and moderate, while many moderates will be turned off by what sounds like leftist rhetoric.
But I really think the book has much to offer to anyone. For leftists, I do think that Ostrom's focus on practical problem solving and application can be very helpful to apply to their own thinking. And being written from a leftist perspective, it is a good starting point for moderates who wish to go beyond the caricatures, when it comes to understanding anarchist ideas - precisely because Ostrom was not a leftist herself.
Ostrom built a case that not being regulated by the state does not imply there are no institutions and no enforcement of rules. And by being empirical and practical and moderate …
The only criticism I have is the title. It seems to me that most people who would consider themselves “radicals” will (unjustly) consider Elinor Ostrom's positions to be too reformist and moderate, while many moderates will be turned off by what sounds like leftist rhetoric.
But I really think the book has much to offer to anyone. For leftists, I do think that Ostrom's focus on practical problem solving and application can be very helpful to apply to their own thinking. And being written from a leftist perspective, it is a good starting point for moderates who wish to go beyond the caricatures, when it comes to understanding anarchist ideas - precisely because Ostrom was not a leftist herself.
Ostrom built a case that not being regulated by the state does not imply there are no institutions and no enforcement of rules. And by being empirical and practical and moderate, she demonstrated that it's entirely plausible for such institutions to be stable and realistic.
Derek Wall does a good job of summarizing Ostrom's corpus of work. And he does so in a way that is pretty broadly accessible and useful. His book deepened my admiration for Ostrom even further. I can not recommend it highly enough, to anyone at all interested in political economy.
"Jazz Bashara is a criminal. Well, sort of. Life on Artemis, the first and only …
A rare example of the genre of Cyber-Anti-Punk: Set in a dystopian corpocracy, all about a quest to preserve the status quo of lawless capitalism.
It's good Sci-Fi and a fun plot, though, if you can look past the themes.
The Nebula Award–winning author of Kindred presents a “gripping” dystopian novel about a woman fleeing …
Gut-wrenching. I think what broke me most is that even though the book already starts in a post-apocalyptic world, with societies institutions pretty much completely broken down, Lauren (the protagonist) spends the first half of the book talking about having to prepare "in case it gets bad". As another character puts it: "We haven't hit bottom yet". But as bad as it gets, the story provides at least a glimmer of hope, in teaching the merits of mutual aid.
It's too bad Butler didn't get to continue and finish the series past the first two books. She clearly put down the seeds (no pun intended) for a pretty epic, millenia-spanning story. I wish we'd get to read it.
Lilith Iyapo has just lost her husband and son when atomic fire consumes Earth—the last …
This was the first book by Octavia Butler I read and her ability to speak in allegory is uncanny. It's an absolute page-turner, a gripping story. While also being a scathing indictment of the colonialist mindset and asking some of the most uncomfortable questions about free will and the human condition. I have rarely enjoyed being thrown into an existential crisis this much.
On a remote, icy planet, the soldier known as Breq is drawing closer to completing …
Just as good the second time around :)
A mind bending book. The way Segal perceived the world is a fascinating glimpse into the complexity of human consciousness.
From the description, this might turn you away from leaning too much into esoteric and meta-physics. But the actual truth is surprisingly nuanced. Segal has strong backgrounds both in spiritual movements and psychology and she doesn't shy away from using or critizising either lens. I found her descriptions mostly compatible with my own atheist world view. She doesn't seem to try to indoctrinate the reader. So I recommend approaching her story with an open mind.
Established in 2025, the purpose of the new organization was simple: To advocate for the …
This was one of the wildest books I've read this year. A great mix of novel, non-fiction essays and almost poetic chapters. It makes for an interesting read and every other chapter gave me a new inspiration to read up on a new concept I've never heard of.
It's also eco-socialist wish-fulfillment. What if we could just convince some of the most central powerful institutions to just try? To actually implement the systemic changes needed to get through the climate crisis? And do away with capitalism in the process?
I really liked it. It's not all rosy glasses, it's actually pretty brutal. But at the end of it all, it's hopeful. I think we need that right now - I certainly do.