Tag: 150–299 Pages
On Certainty (Ludwig Wittgenstein)
On Certainty: Learn more at Amazon or at Goodreads.
“Written over the last 18 months of his life and inspired by his interest in G.E. Moore’s defense of common sense, this much discussed volume collects Wittgenstein’s reflections on knowledge and certainty, on what it is to know a proposition for sure.”
New Books Playground says: On Certainty is one of our favorite philosophical writings, by one of our favorite philosophers. Continue reading…
The Luck Factor: Why Some People Are Luckier Than Others and How You Can Become One of Them (Max Gunther)
The Luck Factor: Why Some People Are Luckier Than Others and How You Can Become One of Them: Learn more at Amazon or at Goodreads.
“Luck. We can’t see it, or touch it, but we can feel it. We all know it when we experience it. It’s an obvious description of obvious events. But does it go deeper than this? And if it goes deeper, does it do so in any way which we can harness to our own and others’ advantage?
Taking us on a richly anecdotal ride through the more popular theories and histories of luck—from pseudoscience to paganism, through mathematicians to magicians—Max Gunther arrives at a careful set of scientific conclusions as to the nature of luck, and the possibility of managing it. Continue reading…
Authority (Richard Sennett)
Authority: Learn more at Amazon or at Goodreads.
“This book is a study of both how we experience authority and how we might experience it differently. Sennett explores the bonds that rebellion against authority paradoxically establishes, showing how this paradox has been in the making since the French Revolution and how today it expresses itself in offices, in factories, and in government as well as in the family. Drawing on examples from psychology, sociology, and literature, he eloquently projects how we might reinvigorate the role of authority according to good and rational ideals. Continue reading…
Honoring the Self: Self-Esteem and Personal Tranformation (Nathaniel Branden)
Honoring the Self: Self-Esteem and Personal Tranformation: Learn more at Amazon or at Goodreads.
“‘Tell me how a person judges his or her self-esteem,’ says pioneering psychologist Nathaniel Branden, ‘and I will tell you how that person operates at work, in love, in sex, in parenting, in every important aspect of existence—and how high he or she is likely to rise. The reputation you have with yourself—your self-esteem—is the single most important factor for a fulfilling life.’
How to grow in self-confidence and self-respect.
How to nurture self-esteem in children.
How to break free of guilt and fear of others’ disapproval. Continue reading…
A__hole: How I Got Rich and Happy by Not Giving a Damn About Anyone and How You Can, Too (Martin Kihn)
A__hole: How I Got Rich and Happy by Not Giving a Damn About Anyone and How You Can, Too: Learn more at Amazon or at Goodreads.
“Tired of being walked all over? When the waiter brings you something you didn’t order, do you assume he knows best? Are you ready to demand the respect you deserve?
Martin Kihn doesn’t care what your answers are, because of course you need this book. Watch and learn as this one-time softy transforms himself into a lean, mean a-hole machine.”
New Books Playground says: A__hole: How I Got Rich and Happy by Not Giving a Damn About Anyone and How You Can, Too did not teach us much but it has been really funny. Continue reading…
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing (Marie Kondo)
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing: Learn more at Amazon or at Goodreads.
“Despite constant efforts to declutter your home, do papers still accumulate like snowdrifts and clothes pile up like a tangled mess of noodles?
Japanese cleaning consultant Marie Kondo takes tidying to a whole new level, promising that if you properly simplify and organize your home once, you’ll never have to do it again. Most methods advocate a room-by-room or little-by-little approach, which doom you to pick away at your piles of stuff forever. Continue reading…
No Is Not Enough: Resisting Trump’s Shock Politics and Winning the World We Need (Naomi Klein)
No Is Not Enough: Resisting Trump’s Shock Politics and Winning the World We Need: Learn more at Amazon or at Goodreads.
“A road map to resistance in the Trump era from internationally acclaimed activist and bestselling author Naomi Klein.
‘This book is a toolkit to help understand how we arrived at this surreal political moment, how to keep it from getting a lot worse, and how, if we keep our heads, we can flip the script and seize the opportunity to make things a whole lot better in a time of urgent need. Continue reading…
Highlights from Our Cats (Harrison Weir)
From our journey through random or quality (or random quality) books, here are some highlights from Harrison Weir’s Our Cats (1889).
Emphasis as it appears in the original work may be missing, and our own edits, though marked, may be broad. Important: By sharing these highlights we neither endorse nor recommend respective authors and their views. Assume that we know little of the authors, and that we have nuanced views on the matter—as with all our book recommendations.
[…]in buying a white cat—or, in fact, any other—ascertain for a certainty that it is not deaf.
It is stated that if a dog has white anywhere, he is sure to have a white tip to his tail
[…].
Bad Language (Lars-Gunnar Andersson & Peter Trudgill)
Bad Language: Learn more at Amazon or at Goodreads.
“The title of this book is intended ironically. The main thrust of this book is to argue that one should think twice before condemning particular forms of language or linguistic usages. Written by linguists, it takes the linguist’s objective view but is written in non-technical language so that it can be accessible and entertaining to a large audience. Topics covered include swearing, slang, dialects, accents and jargon.”
New Books Playground says: Bad Language is the most interesting linguistics book we’ve read—it’s entertaining and we got confirmation for what we’ve suspected (that language change is natural). Continue reading…
Get Anyone to Do Anything (David J. Lieberman)
Get Anyone to Do Anything: Learn more at Amazon or at Goodreads.
“Are you tired of being manipulated and taken advantage of? Do you sometimes feel you’re not being listened to and don’t get the respect and cooperation that you deserve? If you’ve ever wanted the ability to take control of every conversation and situation, now you’ve got it! Why go through life letting others lead you, when you can use the greatest psychological secrets to make things go your way… get anyone to do anything… and never feel powerless again! Continue reading…