boxer_dogs_dance

boxer_dogs_dance t1_j1me8ct wrote

Maybe consult a productivity subreddit or read a book like Eat that Frog. Reading is an amazing hobby but learning to be self disciplined is part of adulting effectively. Any habit can be a problem if you don't manage it.

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boxer_dogs_dance OP t1_j1m96do wrote

At the moment, the issue is that being active recommending books to people, I learn about other people's favorites. I am never going to read them all, but I want to collect the titles so I can choose between good options. Currently I am trying to read my way through my existing collection, but when I next go to choose books I want to rely on the recommendations I have collected.

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boxer_dogs_dance t1_j19k6oo wrote

I am not indigenous and he is certainly qualified to approve the name, so that is good to hear about. My first reaction to the name was cringe. But my first reaction to the iPad name was cringe also and that became popular. I didn't see how people would get past menstruation jokes, but they did and now use the name unironically. Bottom line, it's a well intentioned program that may do some good.

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boxer_dogs_dance t1_j0sxsu4 wrote

Yes, but I read widely with interests including history. The Black Swan, Debt the first 5000 years and reading about financial bubbles has changed the way I think about risk and money. Someone reading only beach reads may not benefit as much unless they are bonding with work contacts over specific books to build their network.

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boxer_dogs_dance t1_j0lny5x wrote

For short, clear and beautifully written, Elie Wiesel Night and then Dawn. Man's Search for Meaning is more philosophical if you want that. For a woman prisoner, Corrie ten Boom's book the Hiding Place.

The Gulag Archipelago is a brick of a book. I wouldn't start there. Animal Farm is supposed to represent Stalinism although it works for exploitation generally.

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boxer_dogs_dance t1_j0llybj wrote

a novel painting a picture of a miserable life works the same way a novel painting a picture of an unlikable character works. The misery is the point. Great art isn't only pleasant or fun. Try the Yellow Wallpaper for a short take on the same theme. Actual women live lives like this, just like there are actual migrant farm workers as well as migrant characters in Grapes of Wrath and Cider House Rules. What is your take on Holocaust or gulag survival stories?

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boxer_dogs_dance t1_izwsuuk wrote

See also Stolen Focus by Johan Hari, summarizing research about how social media is designed to be addictive and how it interferes with attention span.

Also the Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen is written with a clever and surprising form for the book. It has amazing unique metaphors, beautiful language and is a brutal and insightful approach to war, espionage and the refugee experience.

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