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phonner

phonner@bookwyrm.social

Joined 3 years, 1 month ago

Math teacher, writer phonner@mathstodon.xyz

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I'm about ready to throw in the towel on Bookwyrm. It's just so frustrating to find that books I've read have been split off from the main book. Someone reads the hardcover, I read the ebook, and our comments & reviews get split from each other.

Babel, by R.F. Kuang, is like the worst case of this: sfba.club/author/696/s/r-f-kuang?page=1 There are SEVEN different entries for the book on SFBA.club.

Amir Alexander: Infinitesimal (Paperback, 2015, Scientific American, FSG Adult)

Review of "Infinitesimal" by Amir Alexander

“Infinitesimal” is the story of the heretical idea that a line segment could be divided into infinitely many parts. Literally heretical, as the Catholic church repeatedly decreed that infinite divisibility went against the natural order, and that accepting, promoting, and teaching it was heresy. The concept of indivisibilty is like a character in Amir Alexander’s story, and we follow its path through ancient times, Reformation, Counter-Reformation, and beyond. It’s a compelling and exciting book about math, science, and history, and the way divisibility influences, and is influenced by, the world around it is a reminder that math and science, as human endeavors, are always deeply intertwined in issues of human culture.

John Caldwell Holt: How Children Learn (1995)

How Children Learn is a nonfiction book by educator John Caldwell Holt, first published in …

Review of "How Children Learn" by John Holt

Written by John Holt in 1967, this sequel to “How Children Fail” feels like a historical preview of many modem education movements, like homeschooling, unschooling, constructivism, “discovery” learning, and the like. The book reads like a measured but outraged reaction to the stultifying, authoritarian schools and classrooms that I presume were commonplace in American education at that time, and sadly, may still be. It’s filled with insightful observations about learning and schooling – trust children to figure things out, follow their curiosity, let them play and experience before forcing a new model of thinking upon them – but it’s also filled with the kind of fallacious conjectures and post hoc explanations common to popular social science books.

Jan Swafford: Language of the spirit (2017)

Review of "Language of the Spirit" by Jan Swafford

A wonderful introduction to the history of Western classical music. Written by a scholar but not too scholarly, the book is full of stories and characters and context. Every chapter comes with numerous listening suggestions that immerse but don't overwhelm you. Exactly what I was looking for as a music appreciator who has never really understood classical music.

William Gibson, William F. Gibson (duplicate): Pattern recognition (Paperback, 2005, Berkley Books)

One of the most influential and imaginative writers of the past twenty years turns his …

Review of "Pattern Recognition" by William Gibson

A thriller-ish story grounded in a kind of philosophy-of-advertising that I found unexpected and interesting. It becomes a little more procedural in the second half, but is consistently satisfying. The characters are deep, the place descriptions are transporting. I was surprised at how much dread could be evoked from the Michelin man. Happy to learn there's a second in the series!

commented on Tracer by Rob Boffard (Outer Earth, #1)

Rob Boffard: Tracer (Paperback, 2016, Redhook)

A huge space station orbits the Earth, holding the last of humanity. It's broken, rusted, …

I read about a third of this book before my loan expired. I probably won't check it out again, unless someone convinces me otherwise.

Adrian Tchaikovsky: Elder Race (Paperback, 2021, Tordotcom)

In Adrian Tchaikovsky's Elder Race, a junior anthropologist on a distant planet must help the …

Review of "Elder Race" by Adrian Tchaikovsky.

I enjoyed reading this but ultimately found it unsatisfying. The characters were interesting, but I wasn't particularly interested in them. The plot grabbed me at first, but then settled into something familiar from other Tchaikovksy stories. Though my initial high hopes weren't met, I can certainly see why others enjoyed this more than I did.

Christina Lynch: Pony Confidential (EBook, Berkley)

An NPR “Book of the Day”

In this one-of-a-kind mystery with heart and humor, …

Review of "Pony Confidential" by Christina Lynch

Whimsical, humorous, unique story about a pony on a quest to re-unite with his human and save her from being convicted of a crime she didn't commit. The pony is a reluctant and hilarious hero, and the characters he encounters and the labors he undertakes are amusing. The human stories of helplessness and isolation parallel those of the animals, and are delivered with sarcasm and wit. It takes a while to get going, tends to drags on in places, and certainly has a few head-scratching moments, but well-written and fun.

Becky Chambers: Record of a Spaceborn Few (Paperback, 2017, Hodder & Stoughton)

Centuries after the last humans left Earth, the Exodus Fleet is a living relic, a …

Review of "Record of a Spaceborn Few" by Becky Chambers

Another lovely entry in Becky Chambers's Wayfarer series. This serves as an ethnography of sorts of the Exodans, descendants of Earth dwellers who made large ships their permanent homes, describing their lives through a set of interconnected lives and stories. It's light sci fi, but the universe Chambers has constructed is optimistic and compelling, and the stories ring true both there and here.