Review: Love, Theoretically

Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood
My rating: 4 of 5 stars



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Review: Animal Farm, by George Orwell

Animal Farm by George Orwell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The book is about a revolution taking place in the "Animal Farm", in which animals overthrown their human masters, and implement Animalism, in which all animals are free and equal!

I started this book being very skeptical. I read that it was a satire and a critique of communism, so I was wondering if this was going to be some sort of glorification of capitalism. I started reading it, and immediately felt uncomfortable. The book starts with an old pig, Old Major, talking about the plight of the farm animals, about being exploited, and about his desire to be free and have a better life, not only for him but for all animals. So I am thinking, this is meant to be satire, but it’s just talking about how a sentient race is trying to get free from oppression from slavery and from cruelty - is that meant to be bad or absurd? Is the author's point that inferior races are just meant to accept their fate? That the animals (the masses) cannot take care of themselves without masters? (this is not as facetious as it sounds, there are lots of captains of industries who really think that). Or was the criticism against communism as trivial as to say that the problem with it is that it promised to abolish all luxuries, even small ones, and that is why it couldn't work? (To be clear, I do agree with putting limits on big luxuries - no one needs 5 mansions and 3 yachts; but I do think that small luxuries, such as nice clothes and the occasional nice meal, are not anathema to solidarity and empathy towards people in need).

But it quickly becomes apparent that the criticism is of the leaders of the new movement - as soon as the revolution happens, they immediately start taking advantage of it and of everyone else. Basically, the whole revolution was a lie - they didn't get rid of masters, they just became the new masters! Animalism was never really implemented - it existed only in name, but not in practice and spirit.

I came to the book feeling very skeptical, but it won me over quickly. The parallels to history are fantastic! So "animalism" is "communism", the pigs are the communist leaders, with Old Major being an amalgamation of Marx and Lenin, Napoleon being Stalin, and Snowball being Trotsky. The story is a surprisingly informative and delicious satire of Stalinism and the Soviet Union!

Past 1/3 of the book, things really pick up. Napoleon (Stalin) is in full control, and things start to get real. The absurdities of the new regime grow day by day, and the similarities to the real history become starker and bleaker. As time passes, things just get bleaker and bleaker, and then outright tragic. When we come to denouement, years have passed, and the animal farm has achieved some stability. But then, when you thought you knew where it was heading, it finally arrives at its conclusion - that the ultimate stage of the Stalinist regime is good old capitalism - the pigs were, after all, capitalist pigs!

Did Orwell really predict the current state of capitalist Russia???

I liked that the author also criticized the other farms (i.e. countries) for demonizing the Animal Farm right from the start, lying about it, and minimizing their achievements; and that once they realized that Animal Farm was a more brutal place for the animals and a more profitable farm (at least for their masters) than the other farms, they looked at it with envy, and desired to emulate those aspects.

After reading it, I learned that the author (Orwell) was a Democratic Socialist, and that the book was written towards the end of World War II, when the UK was an ally to Russia! That just made the story much more remarkable!

Additional note: as a follow-up, I read "The Death of Stalin" right after this book - perfect coda to the story!

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Review: Snuff (Discworld, #39; City Watch, #8)

Snuff by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Great book. Dynamic, witty, and as always, lots of fun!

In a lot of books I have read recently, it feels like it's mostly setup and then you have all the action at the end of the book; or the reader knows the answers to the mystery central to the plot from the beginning, and you're just waiting for the protagonist to catch up. This book is neither of these two cases: there is always something happening, the pacing is perfect, it's always moving the story forward. All of it is a good read, the journey is just as good as the destination; and the ending is just right!

If you know the Discworld canon and division of books, this is a "City Watch" story. However, it's more of a Sam Vimes story, not the whole City Watch, because it takes place during Vimes vacation trip to the country. In this story, Vimes has risen to the position of Duke, is incredibly well-regarded by all, recognized as a very important person not only in Ankh-Morpork but also by the dwarves and trolls. But then Vetinari somehow manipulates him (through his wife) into taking a vacation in the country, to go visit his wife's family manor, of which Vimes is now lord.

The main plot is a murder mystery, with Vimes trying to solve the murder and bring those responsible to justice. At times it feels like it is riffing on a Sherlock Holmes story, with Vimes standing for Sherlock and his gentleman's gentleman Willikins for Dr. Watson. The story is set on the countryside, and it's meant to be evoke (in a satirical way) stories in the English countryside from the 1800s - think Jane Austen, Emily Bronte. He actually has a minor character called Jane who is most definitely the local incarnation of Jane Austen. Thus following this theme, the book has a great exploration of the questions of class and elitism in Britain.

A big theme is racism, nominally about racism against goblins; but calling out all the ways a group of people can be racist against other groups of people. And how first it's racist towards one group; and once that group gains acceptance, racist against another group; and once that one is also acceptable, another, and so on. But surprisingly, it's not just about overt racism, but about not doing anything while others are being racist; about just sitting idling by, letting things be because that's how they always have been. The story literally says that everyone should take up arms if that's what is needed to combat racism. Vimes shames the good citizens of the village for failing to do that.

The book has many scenes and dialogues full of self-reflection, of digressions, of wonderings about life, morality, about what is right and wrong. It feels very introspective and retrospective, as if the author is reflecting on his own life. It doesn't shy away from exploring some quite dark themes, like racism mentioned above, but also violence, slavery, exploitation, the condition of misery of poor people. It is maybe as if the author thought as he was getting older and closer to being unable to write anymore, he better address some more serious topics while he had a chance, before he was unable to. I think this brings some maturity to the Discworld series as we near its end, and it is better for it.

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Review: The House of the Spirits, by Isabel Allende

The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

An interesting but difficult read. But before talking about the story, a pet peeve: this book has a lot of foreshadowing, which is a technique I don't like. It makes reading very repetitive, leaves the reader thinking "haven't they said that already?".

It’s a difficult read because of how detestable the protagonist, Esteban, is. At times it looks like the book might be a redemption story, or at least a story about a hero in the Ayn Rand mold - bad enough, but pretending to be good. But no, he is truly cruel, stealing, raping and murdering without concern and with impunity. He treat his employees at best like children, but usually like animals. And "employees" is already being too generous, they are like his slaves (for many years he didn't pay them); or more like his serfs from a feudal system, where he is the lord with all rights over their life and death. And all that while placing himself above all, like he is doing everyone a favor, that "job creator" mentality.

Esteban is definitely the central character of the book - some summaries say it’s meant to be Esteban and Clara, but Esteban steals the focus and scene continuously. So it’s a story about a egotistical despicable man, commuting his crimes, abusing everyone around him, and getting away with it - he just keeps prospering! His eventual loneliness at home is hardly justice, and the fact that his descendants suffer due to his own actions is the opposite of justice: it's just one more instance of him getting away with it, with the only addition that now others have to pay the price. I suppose that the good thing about this story is how it illustrates how the rich and powerful get their way, no matter how much evil they cause, and everyone else has to deal with it.

It also illustrates the elite mentality of seeing themselves as innocent victims, and of being truly deserving of their power. Esteban constantly brings up how the poor are lazy, and that he is rich because he worked hard for everything, that he started from nothing like them - never mind the fact that he inherited vast tracts of farm land from his family, and that was the foundation of his wealth and power. He often accuses the poor and the "Marxists" of being criminals and wanting to take things by force - never mind all the crimes that he himself did and all that he took by force. He abuses, rapes, steals, and pages later, says without irony that he "never committed any crimes, except tax evasion". In the end, that is a weakness of the book: he is depicted completely without introspection, and the reader is left with no insight into his mind and his actions. The story ends well for him, he never comes to any realization of how twisted his worldview is. He never shows any regret, goes to the end defending his positions, and only admits that something is bad when it affects him personally. He defends his anti-socialism, his feudalism, his support of the coup, and only admits that perhaps the military went a bit too far - they were mostly right, they could have dialed down the violence just a bit; you know, if they had not gone after people connected to the elites, to himself, then everything would be all right. He is a deplorable person to the end.

Only towards 2/3 of 3/4 of the book we finally move beyond Esteban, and the country itself becomes the main character, as we get to the story of the military coup and dictatorship in Chile. Esteban is no longer the central character, as the focus passes partially to Alba, his granddaughter. It has some romance, personal tragedies, and some very difficult passages at the end. But all that is in service to capturing the events of the coup. It's all tragic and difficult.

Another thing I didn't like was that I thougth that the authors engaged on a lot of what-about-ism and "both-sides"-ness. She does this both at small and large scales. She draws a parallel of the hate of Esteban for Pedro Tercero, for being a peasant (never mind that he eventually is a country music star) daring to love his daughter; to the hate that Pedro Tercero has for Esteban, *for trying to kill him and cutting off his fingers* - right, almost the same :/. She equates the violence of the rebels (fighting to survive) with the violence of the military (fighting to wipe out anyone who might threaten their iron grip on power), which is offensive to say the least. She clearly condemns the military dictatorship, but on the other hand she leaves a lot of (false) criticisms of socialism unquestioned.

In the end, the book as a whole is good for the big picture of the country it presents, adeep dive into the culture, and the molding of its society and its politics throughout the 20th century. If you're not familiar with Latin America modern history, it might be revelatory. This is the biggest strength of the book, and what makes it a worthy read.

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Review: The Labyrinth Index (Laundry Files, #9)

The Labyrinth Index by Charles Stross
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

It's a great exploration of the world after the shocking events from the previous book. Nyarlathotep is in charge - now what? The plot seems fun, and a good way to up the ante. And although the previous book was a good sort-of-conclusion to the story of the main characters, this book is the one to actually have the Laundry face its greatest enemy, alluded to from the very first book, the sleeper ((view spoiler)[Cthulhu (hide spoiler)]). It's a good plot, going back to the first two books, and a more technical sort of spy book, with the protagonists going into a secret-agent type of mission, but dealing with a lot of the bureaucracy, setup, and technicalities. You can tell there was a lot of research going into it. I really like that, since that's what made me like this series to begin with. It had a lot of non-linear story-telling, with flashbacks and pauses for technical explanations. It also had lots of high political intrigue, which is quite new to the series. Finally, there is a lot of action, of the more conventional type with guns and shootouts (it takes place in the US!), also in contrast to the previous books. In particular, the ending was very action-filled, with lots of cool stuff happening. It was very satisfying!

One thing I didn't like was the choice of characters. I would have preferred a book following the main protagonists, Bob and Mo, but they are not really present here. It's too bad, since it looks like this will be the last book following the main storyline for a while (the author switched to writing about secondary stories, "side quests", happening in the new world). So instead of Bob and Mo, or even Alex the vampire, we got pretty much all the other side characters thrown together in a single mission, for no apparent reason other than they are the ones we are familiar with and are still alive. It was weird selection, with all new interpretations of the characters. Some of them are good, some of them seem forced and completely out of place, so it's a mixed bag of characters and characterization.


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Review: The Delirium Brief (Laundry Files, #8)

The Delirium Brief by Charles Stross
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

An excellent continuation and an almost-conclusion of the Laundry Files overall story!
It picks up directly from the previous book, so don't think about reading this if you hadn't read what came before. However, it does have a very brief summary of the story so far at the beginning, so if it has been a while since you have read it, this helps.

I like how the story starts with our protagonists having progressed to be at the top of the organization. It was good following them along all these years, and seeing them now in high positions, being recognized. It also brings back a lot of characters and plotlines from the older books - it's a great "it's all coming together" book, but it does require you to have a good memory for a lot of it.

The action is great in this one. In previous books, they always felt like they spent 90% building up to something, then you got the action on the last 10%. In this one, the action is much more evenly spread, there is stuff happening from the beginning. This plot moves briskly, and there is a "twist" about a third of the way in (the "enemy attack"), and it is a pretty shocking one, and drives the rest of the plot. By the halfway point, the plan is already clear. This book is not holding back, there is a lot going on, and it's pretty fun. Bob is a great character in this book. He is incredibly powerful, but also grounded, very human and very non-American: he doesn't simply go around beating the bad guys sensibly, and when he does hurt someone, he feels very guilty. It makes for a much more compelling character than if he was more of a super-hero.

It strikes me how non-American all of the action is. Guns are rare; people are reluctant to use guns and kill people; there is way more bureaucracy than violence.

The ending is great, and it could be a good stopping point, except that I really want to know "now what???".

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Review: The Nightmare Stacks (Laundry Files, #7)

The Nightmare Stacks by Charles Stross
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Comparing to the previous entry in the series, this is a much better and more fun book. And as I am reading the audiobook, the narration is also much better, more lively.

It feels more like the earlier books of the series, specially the very first book and the early short stories; and the narrator/protagonist himself, Alex, sounds a lot like Bob Howard, the main hero of the series. He is different, yet similar. So it's a back to the roots type of book. The story in this book, (view spoiler)[the Elf invasion (hide spoiler)], is a detour from the overarching story of the series ("Case Nightmare Green"), but it still ties with everything else, and moves the overall story forward.

The one complaint about the book is that most of it feels like prelude, like it's building up to something, which then happens only at the very end of the book, and very quickly. The end is very interesting, but then it just kinda happens and then the book is over - there is no further explanation, no exploration of the consequences. It's too bad, because it sounded pretty good. I guess that's meant to leave us wanting for the next book!


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Review: The Annihilation Score (Laundry Files, #6)

The Annihilation Score by Charles Stross
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book is 5th novel in The Laundry Files series. It needs a lot of knowledge from the previous books in order to make sense and be enjoyable. I thought that it was weird how much it calls back to previous books - the result must be that it filters out people unfamiliar with the series, or people who read a long time ago and don't remember the details, you can't just pick this up on its own and enjoy it. The effect must be a diminishing fanbase (and diminishing returns) as the series progresses.

The story is good, but a little dragged out. Most of it feels like prologue, like it's building up to something, and the plot only becomes clear in the last 10% of the book. There are interesting parts sprinkled all throughout the book, but a lot of it feels like filler.

Still, I really like its approach to the Cthulhu mythos, to the genre of spy thriller, and how it mashes them up. This entry in the series is also particularly good as it shifts attention to one of the supporting characters, "Mo" O'Brien, giving the series a more diverse point-of-view. It was also striking that it used this change in protagonist to inject some elements of romance novel into the story - it was a bit cringey, but on the whole fun.

Finally, I liked how in this book, the series shows that the characters are developing and growing as people. Both Bob and Mo started out as "normal people", then have low-ranking positions in the Laundry, then become field agents, then super-spies, and finally get very high in the organization. It's a satisfying ending.

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Review: I Shall Wear Midnight (Discworld, #38; Tiffany Aching, #4)

I Shall Wear Midnight by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A Discworld book about the young witch Tiffany Aching and the Nac Mac Feegle. The story follows and calls back a lot to Wintersmith, so it might be useful for the reader to have read it recently, or at least look up a summary to remember what it was about. However, it's a much darker story than the usual, which is normally not at all for the Discworld series. It's still written in the usual Discworld style, funny and irreverent, with lots of puns and little jokes interwoven with the narration and dialogue. The Nac Mac Feegle are, as always, hilarious and a highlight. But the book has a pretty dark start, and the main theme ends up being about religious zealotry. It's also interwoven with many sub-plots and mini-stories about prejudice, ignorance, and violence. The book is about Tiffany Aching growing up (she was 13 in the last book, she is "almost 16" now); so it seems that the book themes are also "growing up".

The theme is not necessarily bad, but the books drags the story quite a bit. We only get to the main plot around 1/3 of the way in, and as we get towards the end, the main plot (the fight against the antagonist) feels almost secondary to all the other stuff going on. This is partially due to Pratchett's style of filling up his books with subplots and jokes; but it also feels like the main story is simply not that compelling.

In the end, it was a good Discworld story, but not a notable one.

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Review: Gabriela, Cravo e Canela, by Jorge Amado

Gabriela, Cravo e Canela by Jorge Amado
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The book is a romance by Jorge Amado, taking place in the countryside of the state of Bahia in Brazil, in the region that grows cacao. It happens in the 1920's, when the region was undergoing a lot of population and economic growth, due to the start of the cacao industry. The book is in truth two stories told in parallel: one is the romance between the titular Gabriela and Nacib; and the other is about the small town politics of this Northeast town of Ilheus, in the period leading up to an election.

I didn't particularly like the romance part. It's too much of a fantasy - Gabriela is too subservient, her entire character is in service to the man. She is too conformist, and also too childish - since it's unknown how old the character is, it could also very well be that she is underage. It just didn't leave a good impression.

The book really shines on the other story, about politics. It explores all the peculiarities of Brazilian politics of the time (and still today), the casual corruption, the character of the "Colonel". But even this story is not just a linear, singular plot - it's a web of many stories, characters, anecdotes, happenings, gossip and jokes, all weaving together a brilliant picture of the Brazilian culture and society of the time, with its singular costumes, mores, sexism, misogyny, some of which still persists today.

It's a funny and captivating read.

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Review: The Plague by Albert Camus

The Plague by Albert Camus
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The book tells the story of a plague epidemic in the city of Oran, Algeria, that forced the city to close its doors and isolate itself for almost one year. Reading it now in 2023, I can't believe this didn't become *required* reading at the start of the COVID pandemic! (although it did become a best-seller during the pandemic). It reminds me of the movies Outbreak and Contagion, both of which must be influenced by the novel. It has all the hallmarks of the typical pandemic "plot" (or real-life!), like the authorities refusing to acknowledge reality, not acting immediately to precent a panic, the people themselves denying that it was serious; quarantines, lockdowns, and the whole spectrum of human nature when faced with such a disaster. Sadly, although old, the novel is entirely relevant to present day. For example, it features people fighting back against the quarantine, locking house doors to prevent the sick family members to be taken to the hospital!

The narration is very matter-of-fact, like a reporter writing. At first, it's exciting and fast paced, but then towards the middle, it starts to feel that it is dragging on too much. There is a lot of reflections, “philosophizing” about people's behavior.

Still, it had a lot of great scenes, great quotes, and thought provoking questions.

It struck me that the novel focus more on the logistics of quarantine and lockdown, and spends more time describing and exploring the human behavior, psychology , sociology, human nature in this environment, rather than the disease and death. We don’t even get a description of someone dying from the disease until 3/4 of the book (and it’s a brutal one). Makes sense, since the story is supposedly based on a breakout of cholera that happened in Oran decades earlier; and in this book the disease is plague - obviously the specific disease is secondary to the book, what really matters is the people. In the end, I think it makes it more universal, as it’s not really specific to the plague.

The main protagonist is Camus' absurdist hero: the idealist doctor in the middle of an epidemic. He works tireless not only to help his patients, but also to show people that the only way to fight an epidemic is through common decency - a difficult proposition then, a difficult proposition now.

The question of religion and faith is explored in the character of Father Paneloux, a priest respected by the whole town, who makes a series of ominous sermons. In his first sermon, it’s exactly what you expect, taking the stereotype to the verge of parody: “you deserved it”, says the priest. It’s troubling though, that this message is never directly questioned in the book; and it’s scary that this echoes so well the message of preachers to this day to all pandemics (like AIDS and COVID). By the second sermon, his position is more nuanced, and he himself addresses one of the crucial questions of faith: how can we explain the suffering of children? His conclusion, though, is hard and cruel, even if the narrator does not paint it like that: we must believe everything, we must believe in God otherwise we believe in nothing. The suffering of children, if anything, proves the existence of God. It’s strange that the narrator has such a neutral tone when describing the sermon and the message. Maybe he didn't want to explicitly refute it, but rather show how cruel it is, letting the reader decide that this is a horrible position to defend.

Towards the end, the narrator very briefly addresses the matter of social and economic inequality. People are starting to notice that the rich are doing much better through the epidemic. The authorities reassure the people that in death, all are equal; but the people reply “nobody wants that kind of equality!” :). This is great stuff!

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Review: Unseen Academicals (Discworld, #37; Rincewind, #8)

Unseen Academicals by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Very funny and a lot of fun, as always!

Also as usual, it's not just one story, but at least two main stories (and many more themes) interleaved, with lots of other stories in the subtext. The football (soccer for the American reader) is just the framing device, but it explores a lot of themes around it, like how the celebrity can escape their poor origins, how the game brings people together, how it is a metaphor for society, etc…. There is also a love story, which is initially I thought it was a bit of Romeo and Juliet (with Romeo called Trev, and Juliet actually being called Juliet), a star-crossed romance between people rooting for different teams; but then it becomes about exploring the relationship of the footballer and WAGs (Juliet is, as many times in real life, a model), as well as their careers. In fact, I was struck about how the author talks about the career of a model, it feels very positive, and not condescending like many other writings on the subject. It then delves deeper into another main theme/plot, the subject of The Other, of accepting people from different backgrounds, particularly from vilified backgrounds, here personified by an Orc; how if given a chance, people can show that stereotypes don't capture the full picture; it's a very "on-your-face" criticism of racism.

It also had some great scenes with the wizards of Unseen University (particularly Archchancellor Ridcully) and with the machiavellian Lord Vetinari.

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Review: The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I read "The Hobbit" after the "Lord of the Rings" (LOTR) trilogy, and I was surprised that it had a lot more magic than LOTR – more magical creatures, more magical feats, a much more fantastical feel to it! LOTR, in comparison, is much more of a war book. It felt a unbalanced too, with a lot more detail spent on some misadventures in the first half of the book, and very little time spent on the more epic parts of the story (the Desolation of Smaug, the Battle of the Five Armies). Still, it was a fun book, and a must-read if you liked LOTR.

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Review: No Exit and Three Other Plays, by Jean-Paul Sartre

No Exit and Three Other Plays by Jean-Paul Sartre
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a collection of four plays by Sartre, and it is an interesting read. The first play, No Exit, is by far the best. It has a great premise, and the conclusion is both funny and deep. It was also great learning that this is the origin of the saying "Hell is other people"! I give this whole book a 4/5 rating just because of this play; if it was only the others, I would give a 3/5 at best.

The second play, The Flies, is a retelling of a Greek myth, and it is very weird.

The third (Dirty Hands) is interesting, it's about revolutionaries during a war (write what you know, I guess ;) ), with a lot of discussion about whether it's ok to commit murder in the name of the revolution. There is a lot of navel gazing, and the women are written weirdly, but it is till interesting.

The last story, The Respectful Prostitute, about racism and racial crimes in the United States in the first half of the 20th century, is disturbing and sad.


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Review: The Return of the King (The Lord of the Rings, #3) by J.R.R. Tolkien

The Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The conclusion to the Lord of the Rings trilogy - It is a satisfying conclusion, very epic. It is long, longer than what I thought, with lots of information, backstory, and worldbuilding. I actually liked the worldbuilding in this book even more than in the previous two.

I also like that right at the start of the book, it reframes the entire trilogy as a fight between Gandalf and Sauron - not a direct fight, but a game in which Gandalf is moving his pieces against the Enemy. This makes Gandalf role and actions a lot more satisfying - sometimes is mystifying why Gandalf acts the way he does; if he is as powerful as we think, why doesn't he go against Sauron? Why doesn't he ever use some teleportation spell, or fireball, or anything other than light shows to do anything? So in this reframing, it's because he doesn't want to fight Sauron; he wants Middle Earth to fight Sauron; he is interfering just enough to make the right people meet each other, and nudge things along towards a good outcome.


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Review: The Two Towers (The Lord of the Rings, #2) by J.R.R. Tolkien

The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Two Towers
2022-11-25 -> 2022-02-02
This book starts directly from where the first book in the trilogy start - and I mean directly! It's more like the trilogy is a single book, split in three volumes. There is no preface or explanation or recap - the first chapter feels like it's just the next chapter from the first book.

This book has a lot more description, a lot more filler material, and more worldbuilding, which can be good and/or bad. But it also has a lot more action, and initially, things seem to speed up somewhat - it's a lot more of what you expect from a fantasy book. However, it gets to feel a bit like a slog towards the middle, with a lot of travelling, not a lot of plot. There is some excitement towards the end, in the last chapters in book, when there is a pretty surprising fight (I am not going to say more to avoid spoilers).

The narration by Andy Serkis continues to be superb.


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