The Crusades Through Arab Eyes (French: Les Croisades vues par les Arabes) is a French …
I've currently been playing (Reading?) the visual novel "Misericorde" which is a lovely murder mystery about some nuns in the 1400s. Very "The Name of the Rose" coded, but significantly more gay. The author mentioned this and a few other books when asked for a reading list. This time period is fascinating to me at the best of times, so I'm quite looking forward to delving into more depth about it!
What a rare mushroom can teach us about sustaining life on a fragile planet
Matsutake …
There Must Be Something I'm Not Getting
3 stars
Because of how much I see this book praised in lefty circles, I thought I would love it when I checked it out from the library. But as the title says, there must be something that I'm not getting about this book, because it really didn't click with me. Of course the mushroom imagery and contemplation on living a life in the ruins of capitalism were exquisite, but there were a few niggling things that bothered me. Firstly, I was not too convinced by the author's claim of "We can learn to live in the ruins of capitalism if we follow the example of people who either are or are descended from people who fought explicitly to uphold capitalism and imperial exploitation of their own countries, and people who claim what they're doing is capitalism in its purest form!" Undoubtedly, these people are living a pericapitalist existence to borrow the …
Because of how much I see this book praised in lefty circles, I thought I would love it when I checked it out from the library. But as the title says, there must be something that I'm not getting about this book, because it really didn't click with me. Of course the mushroom imagery and contemplation on living a life in the ruins of capitalism were exquisite, but there were a few niggling things that bothered me. Firstly, I was not too convinced by the author's claim of "We can learn to live in the ruins of capitalism if we follow the example of people who either are or are descended from people who fought explicitly to uphold capitalism and imperial exploitation of their own countries, and people who claim what they're doing is capitalism in its purest form!" Undoubtedly, these people are living a pericapitalist existence to borrow the author's own term, but shouldn't we strive for something more? Something that actually centres community, the refusal of exploitation, and building better and if needed unofficial institutions? And more specifically, something that explicitly names capitalism as the source of these ills, and seeks to find something to transcend it? Something just seemed missing to me there.
The second thing that rubbed me the wrong way was the author's description of Matsutake as being a capitalist product only when it was shipped from Vancouver to Japan. The author's description of Matsutake when it arrives in Japan is that of the seller trying to find the best home for the Matsutake, not necessarily the best price. This disregards the fact that brokers and agents are still valid methods of employment within capitalism, and that if looked at from a materialist perspective, the Matsutake remains a capitalist commodity, that is, something that is produced to be sold on the market, regardless of whether it will be a good fit with its eventual customer. There are more theoretical quibbles that I have, but it seems to me that this is more a work of poetry (in some cases explicitly) rather than the somewhat academic book it claims to be.
One of Time Magazine’s 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time
“I have no doubt …
Content warning
Spoilers
Finished this one a while ago, but just posting about it now. It started off really great, I loved the fantasy warlord-era China vibe. What I did not vibe with was the justification for nuking not-Japan, the rewriting of history so that not-Britain was a disinterested third part that actually helped not-China during the not-Opium Wars instead of actually instigating them (Guess where the author lives by the way). I also REALLY did not vibe with the justification of racism against the population that very clearly represents the indigenous people of Taiwan. Overall, I really liked the setting, and really disliked everything that went on in the setting.
From science fiction visionary Annalee Newitz comes The Terraformers, a sweeping, uplifting, and illuminating exploration …
Didn't finish this one before the library due date. I'm not really sure why it didn't grab me. It has all the things that I like, but I didn't feel like any of them came together in the right ways. I might try it another time when it's back in stock at the library and see how my feelings have evolved.
An epic tale of freedom and slavery, love and war, and the potential futures of …
AnPac Theory
5 stars
The title of this review is a little tongue in cheek, as this is definitely speculative fiction. However, I do think that this book is required reading for people who like eco-fiction, solarpunk, and yes, anarcho-pacifism. This book doesn't shy away from asking the hard questions about being pacifistic in a post-apocalyptic climate ravaged world, and yet still comes to the conclusion that pacifism is a goal and an organizational strategy worth pursuing. Interestingly, it also doesn't fully condemn violent resistance and acknowledges that there is still a place for that, just that pacifism is the strategy that the main characters and their community think is best. If you are in any way interested in climate fiction, solarpunk fiction, or anti-capitalism of any form, do yourself a favour and read this book.
A multicultural anthology, edited by Susan O’Connor and Annick Smith, about the enduring importance and …
The Epitome of "Hit or Miss"
3 stars
This is an anthology of short essays about the importance of community, environment, and centering oneself, which I'd normally be super into, but the quality varies wildly. You can finish up the most profound essay on how connection with nature is essential to connect with your community and how both make life better, followed up with an essay about how Singapore's dictatorship isn't that bad actually because they make the trains run on time. Overall, I'd recommend it, but only just, because the highs tend to outweigh the lows.
Worn out after decades of packing steel and raising hell, Viv the orc barbarian cashes …
A Cozy Cup of Warmth
5 stars
This is a fantastic January read for when the weather's bad and you're curled up inside. The plot is very slice of life focused, and it's as warm and cozy as the drinks described in the novel itself. Highly reccommend for anyone who feels they need to escape from real life for a couple of hours.
A multicultural anthology, edited by Susan O’Connor and Annick Smith, about the enduring importance and …
The rest of the book so far has been good (It's an anthology), but the essay I'm reading now is almost laughably bad. It's about the South Vietnamese experience trying to resist assimilation to American culture, which could be interesting, but the author is talking about the things they've lost like "Oh, those evil commies stole my manor house where I extracted rent from like 500 tenants, killed my father who fought in the South Vietnamese army, and stole my servant who literally had to work the day after giving birth at 5:00 AM" (that last one is literally said by the author as though it shows her dedication to her work and not her exploitation). The "happy ending" that the author settles on is that a South Vietnamese exile married a Belgian noble and became royalty of her own. Like I understand that immigration is a brutal process, and …
The rest of the book so far has been good (It's an anthology), but the essay I'm reading now is almost laughably bad. It's about the South Vietnamese experience trying to resist assimilation to American culture, which could be interesting, but the author is talking about the things they've lost like "Oh, those evil commies stole my manor house where I extracted rent from like 500 tenants, killed my father who fought in the South Vietnamese army, and stole my servant who literally had to work the day after giving birth at 5:00 AM" (that last one is literally said by the author as though it shows her dedication to her work and not her exploitation). The "happy ending" that the author settles on is that a South Vietnamese exile married a Belgian noble and became royalty of her own. Like I understand that immigration is a brutal process, and especially immigration to the USA, but let me play a sad song for the author on the world's smallest violin.
I decided that Orion Lake needed to die after the second time he saved my …
This is quite the refreshing take on Dark Academia. Instead of the elitism and classism of contemporary academia being caused by structures of racism and capitalism outside of personal control, it's caused by spooky monsters that you could theoretically punch in the face to regain some agency. It's weird to say that the school literally wanting to physically kill you makes this book less stressful in its depiction of class society, but so it goes.
The Earth has reached a tipping point. Runaway climate change, the sixth great extinction of …
Excellent Collection of Essays
5 stars
This book is actually a collection of essays from many top critical theorists (Including Donna Haraway!) about the Anthropocene, how capital influences it, and what it means for culture and a leftist future. I had to read it for school, and I would heartily recommend it to anyone who wants to learn more about the Anthropocene.
Man, I'm only like a third of the way through this book, but it's a great summer read. It's like a book version of a sword and sorcery JRPG. Definitely not high art, but a lot of fun
