Readings of 2023
I felt the quality of my engagement with literature was improved this year. I attribute this to a few things:
- A couple of excellent blog posts on fs.blog: Reading advice1, and a summary of a book called “How to Read a Book” by Mortimer Adler2.
- The former convinced me to stop “pushing through” bad(ly written) books:
All the time you spend reading something bad comes at the expense of reading something good.
- The latter helped me form a set of basic tests before deeming a non-fiction book worth my time and attention:
Skim a lot of books. Read a few. Immediately re-read the best ones twice.
- A short blog post on an aspect of writing3 helped me think about the initial process, it helped me write documentation at work.
- Inertia from last year
- Superficial, but I just love the way text looks on my e-reader, and I love that I can customise it to my specific accessibility preferences.
Books 🔗
“Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka 🔗
Translated to English by Susan Bernofsky
This story requires one to be ready for it.
I am glad to have read it when I am mature enough for it - any time earlier, and the existentialism just wouldn't have hit as hard. I think it was masterful to plunge the reader into absurdity right from the first sentence, and to let it simmer while the rest of the story is underway. I kept thinking about this book for days, thinking about various ways it can be interpreted. All of them dreadful. The book is more than a hundred years old, yet I haven't consumed any other media that captures the kind of horror in this book. It is also comical, but it adds to the situational sadness rather than take away from it. Like finding out you used salt instead of sugar while making your last ever Chai.
I read the Susan Bernofsky translation, it is very very good, it must have been quite a lot of work to express ideas in English while keeping the original essence of the story intact.
“The Trial” by Franz Kafka 🔗
Translated to English by Breon Mitchell
Initial phase of the story, the "bureaucratic horror" K is going through is not that scary, I thought. I have been to enough offices in India, government or otherwise, experienced enough convoluted pointless bureaucracy; I felt immunised for this book. The story went on, and slowly it unpeeled layers of my sense of safety. I started to realise, under the wrapper of absurdism, there is a glimpse into a feasible reality. That was the scary bit. I saw that things can and do get to this level of wrong. For some in India, it is this bad, today. Try getting a passport when you and your ancestors never had a home.
I knew K was not going to have a happy ending - but knowing wasn't enough, I was never ready for the ending.
This was enough Kafka for me for a year. I will certainly re-read "The Metamorphosis" again - but only after a healthy break!
“Waiting for Godot” by Samuel Beckett 🔗
I did not get it.
“Don’t Read Poetry” by Stephanie Burt 🔗
Speaking of not getting things, I don’t quite ‘get’ English poetry. I think I mentioned this in last year’s post. At least, not on the level of understanding I have with Marathi, or Hindi poetry. This book was excellent for it. It gave me an initial framework to think about various aspects of poetry. In fact, as a side-effect, I feel my appreciation for Marathi/Hindi poems is elevated as well, thanks to this book. I now know what are some exact things that prevent me from enjoying english poetry fully. Some of these are:
- The speed at which a poet is expecting you to make neural connections is often important in poetry. If you don’t make those connections at an appropriate speed, poetry might feel akin to an explained joke - you might understand the mechanics, but you won’t enjoy the humour. An example of this would be an unknown word proving a source of abeyance in the rhythm.
- Some poetry asks you to make expected sounds in the head - and not being a native english speaker means my brain does not make the exact sounds intended. English as a language isn’t exactly known for its phonemic orthography, in many cases the only way of knowing how to sound a word is hearing it.
- Not being a part of the intended audience, or and not having enough contextual information.
A lot of these concepts map to non-poetic arts as well - this book helped me in ways I hadn’t anticipated. I am thankful to the person who gifted me this book (you know who you are). This one goes into the re-read pile.
“Meditations” by Marcus Aurelius 🔗
Translated by Martin Hammond
My lens into this book has never been that of pre-understood Stoicism. I didn't even know the word 'Stoicism' when I first read it in mid-2010s, and I was not invested in it when I picked it up again this year. So maybe my outlook towards this book is what happens when you divorce the book from its larger philosophical context. I consider this as a positive: I was afforded a look into the book's contents without presumption, limited exactly to the contents of the book.
Back when I first read this book, it left quite an impression on me. I credit the book in helping me think about mortality in a healthy way.
I'm afraid I didn't find it as profound on the recent read. It is, simply put, outdated. We have much better understanding of things in 21st century, which makes the metaphysics in the book (which is a sizeable portion of the book) neither relevant today, nor needed (something I also felt when I read "The Art of War"). I found myself rolling my eyes whenever Mr. Marcus started talking about "logos", or fate, and overall deterministic outlook towards the world. At one point he complains about books, which I assume was the "social media" equivalent of the time.
No disparagement towards Marcus Aurelius intended (in case he's reading this). This is essentially his diary, not meant to be a published book in 21st century. He lived in a time when the understanding of the world was not what we have today. It is certainly impressive for what it is, and there are still some good takeaways from this book, as with most ancient literature. It's short as well, your time won't be wasted.
“Taxtopia” by The Rebel Accountant 🔗
I was close to dismissing this book outright based on its presentation, but the subject seemed interesting enough. Even though, should I meet the mysterious author, I get a sense that I will not exactly like them; I am glad I did read the book. It is a funny, enraging, entertaining window into the world of how the ultra-wealthy are able to avoid taxes. There is a vague knowledge of loopholes getting exploited among the general public, but this book gives spells it out, gives some examples of the how of it. Above all, this book is educational, I would like to think that I am somewhat better equipped now to read between the lines of government economic policies, and understand how sometimes these policies end up scoring on the opposite goalpost altogether. The Indian stock market scam was in the news around the time I was reading this book, so my experience heightened.
“The Girls of Slender Means” by Muriel Spark 🔗
I was hooked right from the first sentence: “Long ago in 1945 all the nice people in England were poor, allowing for exceptions.” A satisfying quick read. The story hoops through a nonlinear narrative, with a surprise ending which really pulls everything together. The book felt like it was the exact length for story to be told. It was quite evidently the work of a masterful writer, I would consider this as a good "writer's book". Each sentence feels crafted, tight, punchy. This is not to say that the writing is rigid. "A few weeks of daily lives and affairs of the girls living in a boarding house in 1945 London" is not a premise I thought I would enjoy, but I couldn't put the book down until it was finished.
“Waiting for Godot” by Samuel Beckett 🔗
Okay, so I still don't get it, but there's something captivating in this play. I had to go back to it.
Plays are meant to be seen than read, so I saw it in English, and then in Hindi, Sent an email to the Druid Theatre Company to request if I can purchase their recent version they must have recorded (imagine if they replied!). I looked at a few explainers, but most were too abstract for me. I also re-read the play. I have a sense of it, but I still don't get it, largely speaking. I will re-watch it again sometime. If you are reading this and feel compelled to discuss, please send me a message.
“The Penguin Book of Irish Short Stories” 🔗
Edited by Benedict Kiely
I found an old copy from a vintage book store in Dublin 8 - it now feels like a prize I won. This book put me in the habit of reading short stories to sleep (replacing browsing internet to bed).
These stories were excellent:
- “The Lovers of the Lake” by Sean O’Faolain
- This story was so good, it sold me on Romance as a genre as a whole, and prompted me to go seek Romance novels
- “The Daughter of King Under-Wave” (from An Fianaiocht) by Lady Gregory
- Strange narrative flow, like a dream
- “Red Jelly” by Eithne Strong
- Evocative depiction of living in a cramped house. The protagonist character has an idiosyncratic way of expressing herself, it took me fully in.
- “Fairyland” by Patrick Kavanagh
- “Mr Sing my Heart’s Delight” by Brian Friel
- “The Creature” by Edna O’Brien
- “Such Good Friends” by Ita Daly
- “The Conger Eel” by Liam O’Flaherty
- “Secrets” by Bernard McLaverty
- “The Cat Jumps” by Elizabeth Bowen
- “Wildgoose Lodge” by William Carleton
- “They Also Serve …” by Mervyn Wall
- “Meles Vulgaris” by Patrick Boyle
- “St Brigid’s Flood” by Stephen Gwynn
- “Home Sickness” by George Moore
Of course, many stories were not as interesting, some I disliked altogether. Some simply left me confused. Particularly: “Ballintierna in the Morning” by Bryan MacMahon, “Lebensraum” by Aidan Higgins, and “Return of the Boy” by Michael J. Murphy. Again, if you know what these stories are about, please let me know!
“The Song of Achilles” by Madeline Miller 🔗
With my newfound interest in reading romance, I was suggested at with this book. My outlook here is neutral at best. It is certainly a fresh, original retelling of the Trojan War, and importantly a non-straightwashed version of the story. I did enjoy parts of it, and it is well written. But overall I never felt anything for the characters. It felt too long, and at the same time the characters felt underdeveloped. Maybe "YA romance" is not my cup of tea.
“Pocket History of Ireland” and “Pocket History of Irish Revolution” 🔗
By Joseph McCullough and Richard Killeen respectively
A colleague gave these to me. These pocket books are a perfect starter resource for someone not educated in Irish history. I have always been curious, but never invested enough to read a sizable history book. These were great hooks into the subject, and left me more curious than before. They demanded little time investment, I feel like I finished most of these in Luas journeys. Irish history is quite dramatic (not that drama is the point of history), truth is indeed more engaging than fiction. The books zip through events in Irish history. The stories form a heroic narrative not unlike a well-crafted novel: struggle, which ends with a triumph, but that triumph coming at a cost, sacrifices, ending with sweet but some bitter outcomes.
“Travellers of the Third Reich” by Julia Boyd 🔗
Highly interesting book. It is a collection of writings (personal as well as public) by people who visited Germany during the Nazi regime. They didn't have the benefit of hindsight we have today, so reading these was illuminating. A spectrum of social psychology we all share is at display here: From Quakers trying to appeal to humanity within the Nazis, to middle/upper class visitors quite comfortable in compartmentalising their beliefs, enjoying a nice holiday while ignoring not-so-hidden suffering at display, to surprisingly few cries of alarm. Human desire for status quo is quite strong. During the times of injustice, I expect only a minority of population to actually care deeply enough about injustice suffered by others. Hopefully that is enough.
I read this during my month-long visit back home to India, and it was unsettling to observe parallels: Shocking comfort with which people expressed their bigoted views around (and to) me, news media brazenly in support of xenophobia, steady introduction of laws that make people less free, day by day. I saw in news what they called "bulldozer governance", and the picture was complete: I saw our very own, albeit slow, Kristalnacht.
“Homage to Catalonia” by George Orwell 🔗
This book explores the same time period as the previous, but in Spain, which was going through a civil war. I did not know George Orwell was an active participant in it. He fought for the revolutionary militia, against the Fascists.
There are some of surprisingly humorous moments near the start of the book, which I realise I should have valued more, because things get bad, and it is unfortunately not only the Fascists who cause it so. It is almost condoling to see the sincerity with which Orwell is surprised at the betrayal. It comes to him from people who, on paper, are on the same side as him, but in support of Authoritarianism, who kill the revolution. I can easily see how a person who went through this would write "1984" and "Animal Farm".
To me, the book emphasises the importance of using the right means to achieve ends - and I found a book that explores on this further. More on that below.
Although the book ends with profound sadness, I cherish the second-hand glimpse into a small pocket of freedom people achieved during tumultuous time in history.
“1984” by George Orwell 🔗
I don't know why I never got around to reading this book. But after "Homage to Catalonia", I had to read it. I don't have anything new to say about this book, readers of this post have likely read it already. It is thought-provoking from start to finish. One can't help but draw parallels with history and present. I really wanted things to work out for Winston, even though I knew they wouldn't. It is indeed a great piece of literature. I remember feeling empty right after I finished it, but it lingered in my mind for some days.
“On Anarchism” by Naom Chomsky 🔗
I came across Chomsky during my engineering studies, so when I learned that he is quite vocal politically, it was a bit like seeing your teacher at the market, and I was highly curious about what he has to say. By the end of "Homage to Catalonia", Anarchism as a political movement is not in a good state (pun unintended). It was interesting to know it is alive, within intellectuals at least.
The book is a collection of essays by Chomsky, penned at different occasions. As a result, it feels a little disjointed when looked as a whole. However, each essay is thought provoking. There is some overlap of ideas between the chapters, but that does not do the book a disservice. I must say it is quite a dry read, which might be a good thing: one can disguise bad politics in impassioned prose - good ideas should still look good even if expressed without a lot of affectivity. It was nice to read political views expressed through the mind of an academic.
“Means and Ends” by Zoe Baker 🔗
Books previous brought me to this one. First thing I liked about this book is that it is one of the most cleanly expressed series of ideas I read this year. It is highly accessible. Concepts are satisfyingly arranged, they fit in my brain nicely.
The core argument of this book (and that of Anarchism) is something Mahatma Gandhi's writings also reflect, that the means must be consistent with the ends: "means are foreseeable, ends are not". The means can and must be controlled to ensure they align with the desired ends. Ends do not justify the means. Fairly intuitive idea, one might encounter it expressed in plenty of places (curiously the latest place I saw it was in Brandon Sanderson's fantasy epic "The Way of Kings"). It is not a philosophy book, rather it is a history of Western Anarchist thoughts and strategy from 1868 to 1939. There is plenty to learn from their experience - (I believe) in non-political sense as well.
“Batatyachi Chal” by Pu. La. Deshpande 🔗
This is one of the rare books that make me laugh out loud. A snapshot of a bygone time and place. I enjoyed this book when I was a child, I remembered this as mostly a whimsical, fun book. What I noticed reading it again in my 30s, was subtle expression of wisdom cloaked with humour. Amid laughter, Pu La gets you with a heartfelt moments, moments of sadness as well. Every chapter is filled with unmatched character work - people from the Chal feel real, situations they are in are felt, witnessed rather than read. As I write this, I tried to think of a highlight or two, but the whole book is consistently great, through and through.
“Hasavnuk” by Pu. La. Deshpande 🔗
I couldn't stop after Batatyachi Chal, and wanted another Pu. La. book, obviously. I had predicted this would happen, so I had brought more than one Pu. La. book with me while travelling back from India (it is not easy to get Marathi books in Dublin).
Hasavnuk continued everything I liked in the previous book. Something about reading humour in Marathi just hits me so perfectly. I doubt anybody speaks Marathi like this any more, despite this, these books feel timeless. "Mi ani Maza Shatrupaksha" was especially hilarious to the 10ish year old me. It still is, everything in the book still is. I should give the entire bibliography another go, I keep finding things my young self didn't quite catch on. I am excited just at the prospect of reading more Pu. La. next year.
“Amrutvel” by Vi. Sa. Khandekar 🔗
Maybe it was the headspace I was in, but this book just wasn't it for me. It is a decent story, but it is used as a skeleton for philosophical flesh, not all of it agreeable. The language felt overly elaborate. The characters don't waste an opportunity to get into lengthy ornamental dialogue; I started looking at the book than in it. The language/dialogue being unrealistic is not exactly my complaint - it should be possible to do what the author set out to do, but the core questions being discussed are dated and uninteresting. I think the book requires a high emotional temperament. I did "push through" this book, because it is one of the most recommended Marathi books. It must work for people, so you can give it a try.
“The Book Thief” by Markus Zusak 🔗
I mean, what can I say. Brilliant novel altogether. I have consumed a lot of WW2 media to the point of saturation, but the book still brought a fresh perspective, a fresh treatment. I had feared the story would be morbid; it wasn't - it was full of heart and filled with graceful humour. Of course, it is also sad, they are in WW2 Germany after all. But it is a story of endurance of humanity through darkest of times. I find myself agreeable with this sort of lookback into WW2, rather than, say, Dadaism.
“python-mastery” by David Beazley 🔗
Stretching the definition of a "book" here, but I came across this while trying to find a book to refresh my python skills. This course is simply a series of pages with quick refresher topics, and most importantly, followed by exercise that you have to do yourself. This brought me up to speed (and updated my Python knowledge to early 2020s) better than any book or course could have done. Certainly not for beginners of python, this one is specifically for intermediate-to-experts in python who have used it professionally before. Highly recommend. It is available on GitHub under creative commons licence. I also contributed a few fixes in the course. I am thankful to be a software engineer living in the years where open source exists.
Left unfinished 🔗
“Programming Phoenix Liveview” by Bruce A. Tate and Sophie DeBenedetto 🔗
Elixir remains to be my favourite programming language this year, and I was excited to learn making web apps without using JavaScript. Unfortunately there just wasn't much bandwidth for me to it this year, and I had to allocate this time to upgrade my python expertise, which was needed at work.
“Serious Python” by Julien Danjou 🔗
I say "unfinished" because there were four chapters that were either out-of-date or not that useful for me. It remains to be a good reference book still, and I would recommend it for people with intermediate-to-expert level python skills. I had thought this book is all what I will need to refresh my Python, but I was wrong.
“The Pragmatic Programmer” by David Thomas, Andrew Hunt 🔗
I'm dipping in and out of this one - perhaps because this book has been so popular for so long, most ideas in this book are common knowledge nowadays. This is a good book for people just starting out in Software industry.
“Atomic Habits” by James Clear 🔗
I sensed halfway through that this book could have been a blog post. Then I found the blog post. I think next time I want to engage with this, I will pick up the book again. But until then, the notes I took from the blog post are enough. I think the book is still valuable, I certainly haven't verified the quality of sources and citations, but the ideas make sense to me, and are valuable. James Clear deserves your money: so buy the book, but it is enough to just read the blog post IMO.
Short stories 🔗
The following are my favourite short stories I came across this year (sans the ones in “Penguin Book of Irish Short Stories”):
- "Where Oaken Hearts Do Gather" by Sarah Pinsker
- "Mr. Death" by Alix E. Harrow
- "Rabbit Test" by Samantha Mills
- "The End" by Samuel Beckett
- "D.I.Y." by John Wiswell
- "Cat Pictures Please" by Naomi Kritzer
- "A Guide for Working Breeds" by Vina Jie-Min Prasad
- "STET" by Sarah Gailey
- "The City Born Great" by N. K. Jemisin
- "Badass Moms in the Zombie Apocalypse" by Rae Carson
- "Do Not Look Back, My Lion" by Alix E. Harrow
- "Seasons of Glass and Iron" by Amal El–Mohtar
- "Fandom for Robots" by Vina Jie-Min Prasad
- "Proof by Induction" by José Pablo Iriarte
- "Metal Like Blood in the Dark" by T. Kingfisher
- "As the Last I May Know" by SL Huang
- "Dante and the Lobster" by Samuel Beckett
- "The Tale of the Three Beautiful Raptor Sisters, and the Prince Who Was Made of Meat" by Brooke Bolander
- "A Witch’s Guide to Escape: A Practical Compendium of Portal Fantasies" by Alix E. Harrow
- "Carnival Nine" by Caroline M. Yoachim
- "The Water That Falls on You from Nowhere" by John Chu