Stunning, delightful book. Loved every page of it. It’s exciting to read and the sheer injustice inflicted upon Dreyfuss made me mad – 120 years after the whole episode started!
Category Archives: Blog
Kurt Vonnegut – Slaughterhouse 5 (1972)
A shock. Has all the ingredients to be an awful boy-goes-time-traveling-ferrytale , but it is nothing short of a fantastic book. Having read quite some war novels, this one took me off-guard with its beautiful and intense description of a tormented and harsh life after the US bombings of Dresden. Will never forget the refrainContinueContinue reading “Kurt Vonnegut – Slaughterhouse 5 (1972)”
Why Nations Fail – James A. Robinson & Daron Acemoğlu (2012)
It’s subtitle reads The Origins of Power, Prosperity an Poverty. And that’s exactly what I took from the book. Help is needless if a society doesn’t have working institutions, rule of law and respect for private ownership. I read the book while in Mali, a country which proves the book’s thesis to be right.
John Williams – Butcher’s Crossing (1965)
An instant hit at its reissue – and rightly so. It’ the perfect depiction of buffalo’s on the prairies of 19th century America – it made me, more than ever, wanted to live that life. Wouldn’t it be amazing to ride a beautiful horse amidst the galloping buffalo’s?
Henk Wesseling – De man die nee zee (2013)
Dutch biography on Charles de Gaulle. Probably not the best, but served its goal: to better understand the greatness of the man and the way he inspired France (by saying no).
Thinking Fast and Slow – Daniel Kahneman (2011)
Brilliant. If I had to choose one book to take with me to a deserted island, this is the one. It’s insightful, erudite, innovative (at least to me). It took me a while to read, because every single page is interesting and makes one think. For example; we all suffer from focusing illusion: nothing inContinueContinue reading “Thinking Fast and Slow – Daniel Kahneman (2011)”
Karl Ove Knausgard – Father (2009)
First in a series of 6 – describing in detail the author’s life. Almost on a daily basis. Liked the serenity and the beautiful sentences, but am not tempted to read the other 5 volumes.
Antifragile – Nassim Nicholas Taleb (2012)
An eye-opener on how systems should work to be able to confront the future (not robust, but anti-fragile), from a man I regard as a kind of a hero. Completely independent, extremely smart, but also horrible a presenter and storyteller, as I learned first-hand during a workshop on this book. Anti-fragilty is now part ofContinueContinue reading “Antifragile – Nassim Nicholas Taleb (2012)”
De Fatale Staat – Paul Frissen (2013)
Theoretical book that reminded me of the books I read as student political sciences – eloquent and painted with broad strokes.Revived my interest in complexity. Main notion is the political necessity to learn to reconcile with tragedy.
Todo lo que era sólido – Antonio Munoz Molina (2014)
Essays on Spain in times of crisis – have enjoyed the beautifully written, dense Spanish sentences, again demonstrating the uniqueness the baroque writing of Spanish authors. Molina is clearly a leftist, blaming the capitalist conspiracy for Spain’s trouble.
Stiekem kan hier alles – Eefje Blankevoort (2007)
A book on the surprisingly modern and liberal lives of ‘normal people’ in Teheran that gave me a peek behind the façade of religious conservationism as created by the secret police. Of great help to better understand the country during my trip in Iran.
Revolutionary Iran – Michael Axworthy (2013)
Great book on the interesting history of Iran, its politics and the role of Shi’ism in shaping modern Iran.
The One Thing – Gary Keller (2013)
A present form a friend who believes I’m in desperate need of focus. Though I think a permanent focus is an overrated asset, structuring priorities and getting things done is the number one motivator. This book is a helpful summary of the many management books on the topic.
The Great Escape – Angus Deaton(2013)
Insightful study into the reasons why nations prosper and why some don’t. And proves the case of the pejorative effect of aid. A must read for anyone working in developing countries or with international NGO’s.
No Place to Hide – Glenn Greenwald(2014)
Profoundly influenced my view on privacy vs security. Made me stop with Facebook, mistrust governments even more and strengthened me in my stance that big solutions, using a lot of data, are dangerous. A must-read for anyone interested in the consequences of living in a data-controlled world.
Pascal Mercier – Nighttrain to Lissabon (2004)
One that I wanted to read for a while. This is the kind of novel that makes fiction worth reading, yes even an unique experience. It’s with a great deal of jealousy that I read about Amadeu Ignacio who works at daytime and writes at night. Like the protagonist, Gregorius, he barely sleeps. They don’t feelContinueContinue reading “Pascal Mercier – Nighttrain to Lissabon (2004)”
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