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Nano Book Review

NanoBookReview@bookwyrm.social

Joined 10 months ago

All books are audiobooks. I have CFS so bad I'm stuck in bed. Suggestions welcome. Low-excitement preferred.

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Nano Book Review's books

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All these worlds (2017) 4 stars

Why Do I Have to Be God?

4 stars

The third book in the Bobiverse series, our heros deal with loss, love, and existential threat. Life is strange when you're an immortal computer simulation of a person. It's even stranger when you've got real people to look after, and a bloodthirsty alien civilization to protect them from. Sometimes being God isn't so great.

Pornography Wars (2022, Bloomsbury Publishing USA, Bloomsbury Publishing) 5 stars

About as Objective as You Can Get

5 stars

A look at America's history of porn–from lewd pictures littering civil war camps to the rise of OnlyFans–this book presents a balanced look at the people fighting over sex, culture, and our relationship to both. Kelsey does not aim to convince you that porn is bad or good, but merely to get you to understand why the people fighting have taken up their cause.

The Omnivore's Dilemma (Paperback, Penguin Books) 4 stars

Today, buffeted by one food fad after another, America is suffering from what can only …

Look Closely at Your Food

5 stars

This book is about where your meals come from, and the options you have. Michael says that he often gets approached about this book, years after it came out. "Your book changed my life!" He says just how it changed their life is always different; some people go vegetarian, some add meat to their diet. For me? It answered a question I never knew I asked, many years ago.

Doing Harm (2019, HarperOne) 5 stars

"In this shocking, hard-hitting expose in the tradition of Naomi Klein and Barbara Ehrenreich, the …

Believe Women

5 stars

You might be familiar with some of the misogyny and injustice in the medical systems around the world, but I guarantee you this book will have stories that will leave you dumbfounded. Only in the last 30 years have women been able to fight back against a system that told them it was all in their heads, and like hell they're going to stop now. Do them a favor and read this book.

The End of Everything (EBook, 2020, Scribner) 4 stars

A Good Overview of the State of End Time Physics

4 stars

You've probably heard one or two scientific theories about the end of the universe. Maybe you've heard about the Big Crunch or the Big Rip. Maybe you Haven't. In any case, Katie walks you through multiple possibilities and makes it very clear that the ultimate fate of the universe is still up for debate.

For We Are Many (2017, Worldbuilders Press) 4 stars

Bob Johansson didn’t believe in an afterlife, so waking up after being killed in a …

You're Human, Howard

5 stars

What do you do when you're a computer simulation, but everyone you care about is flesh and blood? The people you know are ephemeral, but your love for them is not. You can never be human again, and yet, you care anyway. Perhaps being immortal isn't all it's cracked up to be.

She's Not There (2004, Broadway) 4 stars

The exuberant memoir of a man named James who became a woman named Jenny.

She’s …

A Memoir of Denial and Acceptance

5 stars

A story of growing up transgender and in denial, this book is unremarkable in a good way. It's a coming of age story where the protagonist is married with children. This is the kind of book you should read if you're finally feeling up to the task of imagining yourself in the shoes of a transgender person. This is the story of trying to choose a lie for forty years and finally giving up.

Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In (Paperback, 1991, Penguin) 4 stars

Describes a method of negotiation that isolates problems, focuses on interests, creates new options, and …

Take Notes

4 stars

A book about negotiation, it is in some ways also a book about conflict resolution. This is the kind of book you buy, annotate, and bookmark heavily. If you find yourself stuck playing games of chicken or constantly feeling stressed or cheated by the deals you make, whether in your personal or professional life, this book is worth a look.

Pests (2022, HarperCollins Publishers) 5 stars

An engrossing and revealing study of why we deem certain animals “pests” and others not—from …

Fantastic Science Narrative

5 stars

What makes a pest? Is such a label even fair? A fantastic blend of narrative and science, this book looks at different animals across time and space and our relationship to them. Prepare to have your assumptions challenged, no matter what your current viewpoint.

How fascism works (2018, Random House) 4 stars

As the child of refugees of World War II Europe and a renowned philosopher and …

Short, Simple, and to the Point

5 stars

A quick look at the political tools of fascism, this book is a great starting point if you've never really bothered to take a look at what fascism is and how it works. Much of the extreme rhetoric you're hearing today will make a whole lot more sense in the context of this book.

Flight Paths (2023, HarperCollins Publishers) 2 stars

Needs more narrative structure

2 stars

I hate giving bad reviews but this book was very 50/50, almost literally so. I suggest you skip the first half and enjoy the second half, if you're still interested. The first half was too disjointed and thin, but the second half finally settled into more of a narrative thread with deeper explanations and ideas.

All about bird migration and how we learn about it.

We Are Legion (We Are Bob) (Paperback, 2017, ‎ Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency) 4 stars

Bob Johansson has just sold his software company and is looking forward to a life …

Flash Fiction Space Politics and Exploration

5 stars

In a flash fiction sci-fi adventure, Bob Johansson is turned into an artificial intelligence and set to roam the stars as a Von Neumann probe. His assignment is to further the interests of a totalitarian theocracy, but things don't go exactly according to plan. The first book in a series, this is a great read for anyone who loves high stakes and big ideas.

Bullshit Jobs (Hardcover, 2018, Allen Lane) 4 stars

Be honest: if your job didn't exist, would anybody miss it? Have you ever wondered …

We've got a problem and it's big

5 stars

A look at the increased amount of bullshit in the world, where it comes from, and how it impacts our lives. If you've ever had a bullshit job, or raged at all the bullshit getting in the way of your real job, this book is for you. You'll find good company in the real-world examples David shows off, and gain understanding in how you ended up in this predicament in the first place.

Salt (2002, Walker and Co.) 3 stars

This book takes a look at an ordinary substance--salt, the only rock humans eat--and how …

Some things change, and others don't

4 stars

A world history missing the usual places, Salt is nevertheless an engaging look into the many different cultures and contexts in which salt has featured in our past. From China to the Americas, humans have been making salt as long as we've been farming, if not longer, and our relationship to the simple little rock is anything but simple.

On liberty (2006, Longman) 4 stars

On Liberty is a philosophical essay by the English philosopher John Stuart Mill. Published in …

Balance is Key

3 stars

Mill makes the case that individual liberties should be as great as possible up until the point where they infringe on other people's liberties. He readily admits that defining exactly where the line is is a difficult task, and ultimately says very little of value except when providing concrete examples. When he does provide his personal opinion, however, it is usually fairly reasonable and does not over simplify things.