LPI Linux Essentials Certification All-in-One Exam Guide by Robb Tracy My rating: 1 of 5 stars Where to begin with this train wreck. I understand that providing accurate and up to date guides for tests like the LPIC can be a difficult task, but this particular book is riddled with too many errors to simply […]
My Spiritual Journey by Dalai Lama XIV My rating: 2 of 5 stars Yes, I am giving the Dalai Lama two stars. Not that there isn’t valuable material here, there always is when it comes to the DL. But to market this as a spiritual autobiography is a bit unfair to the reader. This is […]
LPI Linux Certification in a Nutshell by Adam Haeder My rating: 3 of 5 stars A compehensive look at all the objectives on the LPIC1, though slightly dated in its lack of GRUB2, systemd and udev coverage. The first half, focusing on the 101 exam, does a decent job of bringing the reader along with […]
Not Always So: Practicing the True Spirit of Zen by Shunryu Suzuki My rating: 2 of 5 stars Far from a beginner’s book to understanding the practice of Zen. Much of Suzuki’s lectures seem to be attempting to transfer the ungraspable nature of the world into more concrete forms for our understanding. This, of course, […]
Shutting Out the Sun: How Japan Created Its Own Lost Generation by Michael Zielenziger My rating: 4 of 5 stars This book touched on nearly every Japanese socio-cultural ill that has plagued my mind since I began living here . Scathing in every dimension, often backed by insightful research and careful observations, the author paints […]
The Zen of Fish: The Story of Sushi, from Samurai to Supermarket by Trevor Corson My rating: 2 of 5 stars At times fascinating and insightful, other times annoyingly shallow in its presentation of the sushi phenomenon. Much of the science and history of sushi is spot on and a joy to read about, but […]
The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can’t Stand Positive Thinking by Oliver Burkeman My rating: 4 of 5 stars Self help books rarely get to the crux of the matter. Anyone with an intellect, an inquiring mind, or a shred of awareness will realize that modern “self help” is based on the supposition that one can […]
Narcopolis by Jeet Thayil My rating: 4 of 5 stars This book takes the dirty, desolate, destructive lives of addicts, turns them on their head, spins them around,and spits them back at you in repeatedly surprising ways. How do you make a story about opium/heroin dens in Bombay more decrepit? Make your lead character a […]
So I have attempted a change in my own personal zeitgeist. I’ve relinquished myself from the death-leash of Facebook and freed myself to a cyberworld that feels more 1999-ish. I’ve also made the complete transition to Linux on my tiny, incredible overused-passed its expiration date- Toshiba netbook (now if I can just get my late […]
The Road by Cormac McCarthy My rating: 4 of 5 stars A short, powerful book that follows all the familiar McCarthy themes of death, duty to family, trust and the often hidden nature of humanity. Far more readable than many of his earlier works, primarily because of its exclusion of Spanish dialogue (a realistic but […]