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Easter at the Villa Victoria
Book
It is 1995 and the Morton-Stewarts assemble at the 'Villa Victoria' in Antibes, which has been in...
Antigay Bias in Role-Model Occupations
Book
From the first game of the National League of Professional Baseball Clubs on April 22, 1876, tens of...
BO
Boundaries of Authority
Book
Modern states claim rights of jurisdiction and control over particular geographical areas and their...
Merissa (11765 KP) rated It's a Match in Books
May 2, 2022 (Updated Jun 20, 2023)
IT'S A MATCH was an intriguing story from beginning to end, not going in the direction I thought it would, and oh-so-better for it!
Sarah is living in a world where AI is all around, reminding her of appointments and even advising her on what to wear. Her friends all use it to one degree or another. Her love life is not what she wants it to be so she comes up with the crazy idea of using her AI to sort out her matches for her. This opens a can of worms that deals with just how much is too much, whilst giving an insight into the various supporting and main characters.
There is a lot here about being part Chinese (and other nationalities) but all living together in London. It was an insight into how their lives may be and what the perfect qualities in a partner might be. I say might because I'm not Chinese and so don't know for sure! Some of it seemed quite picky but I'm positive that part is 100% true from what I've heard from friends.
Told mainly from Sarah's perspective, it did throw me slightly when I would get someone else start speaking. My review copy didn't have any headings on the chapters, so it only became clear who was 'speaking' as the chapter continued.
An intriguing story that will have you question what is right and wrong. How much morality exists in AI? Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed it and have no hesitation in recommending it.
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Apr 26, 2022
Sarah is living in a world where AI is all around, reminding her of appointments and even advising her on what to wear. Her friends all use it to one degree or another. Her love life is not what she wants it to be so she comes up with the crazy idea of using her AI to sort out her matches for her. This opens a can of worms that deals with just how much is too much, whilst giving an insight into the various supporting and main characters.
There is a lot here about being part Chinese (and other nationalities) but all living together in London. It was an insight into how their lives may be and what the perfect qualities in a partner might be. I say might because I'm not Chinese and so don't know for sure! Some of it seemed quite picky but I'm positive that part is 100% true from what I've heard from friends.
Told mainly from Sarah's perspective, it did throw me slightly when I would get someone else start speaking. My review copy didn't have any headings on the chapters, so it only became clear who was 'speaking' as the chapter continued.
An intriguing story that will have you question what is right and wrong. How much morality exists in AI? Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed it and have no hesitation in recommending it.
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Apr 26, 2022
Cody Cook (8 KP) rated The Satanic Bible in Books
Jun 29, 2018
LaVey echoes a view of man's value and of non-materialist religion which can be easily found in the writings of Friedrich Nietzsche (especially Antichrist) and Ayn Rand. He is incredibly inconsistent on the subject of morality and shows only a cursory understanding of Christian history, doctrines, and the Bible.
LaVey does not view Satan as a person (nor does he view God that way), but as a representation of what man really is in his primal nature-- a violent and lustful nature which LaVey calls good, though he simultaneously argues that certain parts of it (that which would harm children or rape, for instance) are not good-- a dichotomy that he calls hypocritical in righthand path religions such as Christianity. Beyond this tension, he elsewhere seems to argue for moral relativism, creating a vicious circle of nonsense. Because good and evil are falsehoods and God and Satan are non-persons, the spells and rituals he creates are only symbols meant to harness our primal energies, sending them out to accomplish our goals (much like in the Hicks' Law of Attraction books or in The Secret).
A mix of equal parts tongue-in-cheek symbolism and outright charlatanism.
I suspect that this book's teachings would appeal primarily to two types of people: narcissists who want to seem edgy and angry people who have been harmed by institutional religion. In regard to the former, there are more thoughtful ways to be counter-cultural. In regard to the latter, an assessment of the intellectual weaknesses of this philosophy won't remove the hurt or pain they've been through, but hopefully an understanding that the kind of Christianity spoken of by LaVey is not genuine Christianity can remove some of the hatred they feel toward it due to the immoral actions performed by its claimed representatives.
Totally off-topic, but Lavey looks like a bald version of Evil Spock.
LaVey does not view Satan as a person (nor does he view God that way), but as a representation of what man really is in his primal nature-- a violent and lustful nature which LaVey calls good, though he simultaneously argues that certain parts of it (that which would harm children or rape, for instance) are not good-- a dichotomy that he calls hypocritical in righthand path religions such as Christianity. Beyond this tension, he elsewhere seems to argue for moral relativism, creating a vicious circle of nonsense. Because good and evil are falsehoods and God and Satan are non-persons, the spells and rituals he creates are only symbols meant to harness our primal energies, sending them out to accomplish our goals (much like in the Hicks' Law of Attraction books or in The Secret).
A mix of equal parts tongue-in-cheek symbolism and outright charlatanism.
I suspect that this book's teachings would appeal primarily to two types of people: narcissists who want to seem edgy and angry people who have been harmed by institutional religion. In regard to the former, there are more thoughtful ways to be counter-cultural. In regard to the latter, an assessment of the intellectual weaknesses of this philosophy won't remove the hurt or pain they've been through, but hopefully an understanding that the kind of Christianity spoken of by LaVey is not genuine Christianity can remove some of the hatred they feel toward it due to the immoral actions performed by its claimed representatives.
Totally off-topic, but Lavey looks like a bald version of Evil Spock.
Micky Barnard (542 KP) rated The Boy and His Ribbon in Books
Jan 26, 2019
Often discomforting but gripping
I don't know how to categorise the genre of this book because the story is a metamorphosis of character growth in age and maturity. THE BOY AND HIS RIBBON is a story of becoming family, escaping abuse but never really being free. This is a tale told over a number of years, everything in this book has a tangible and realistic timeline.
The two characters in this book are Ren Wild the boy on the run and his little fellow escapee Della Ribbon. These two were enchanting characters to read; beautiful souls. Ren knocked my socks off as a care giver, his love for Della evolved and bloomed as he fathered-her, brothered-her, best-friended-her. He was utterly selfless in carving out life and survival for his Ribbon and himself. The bond between these two was seemingly unbreakable. Della evolved the most in this book, growing from babe to teen and she was a complex, fiercely-loving and possessive girl.
"He treated me as capable and brave and bright, and that's what I became because I never wanted to let him down because he would never let me down. Simple as that.“
The story is narrated from a dual POV with an emphasis on Ren's perspective but Della then reflecting back on her experiences. I felt there were two distinct phases in this book, both difficult but certainly the latter years, more complex and challenging. There is a discomfort to the story direction that challenged my allegiances, my personal morality and it's a bit of noodled-mess of thinking right now. However, I could not look away, it was an addictive story, compelling in the best way.
I have thoughts about where I think the next book's story line is going and I'm full of trepidation over it but longing to read it nevertheless. I enjoyed Pepper Winter's writing in this immensely, especially the childhood era of Della and Ren.
I voluntarily read an early copy of this book.
Reviewed for Jo&IsaLoveBooks Blog.
The two characters in this book are Ren Wild the boy on the run and his little fellow escapee Della Ribbon. These two were enchanting characters to read; beautiful souls. Ren knocked my socks off as a care giver, his love for Della evolved and bloomed as he fathered-her, brothered-her, best-friended-her. He was utterly selfless in carving out life and survival for his Ribbon and himself. The bond between these two was seemingly unbreakable. Della evolved the most in this book, growing from babe to teen and she was a complex, fiercely-loving and possessive girl.
"He treated me as capable and brave and bright, and that's what I became because I never wanted to let him down because he would never let me down. Simple as that.“
The story is narrated from a dual POV with an emphasis on Ren's perspective but Della then reflecting back on her experiences. I felt there were two distinct phases in this book, both difficult but certainly the latter years, more complex and challenging. There is a discomfort to the story direction that challenged my allegiances, my personal morality and it's a bit of noodled-mess of thinking right now. However, I could not look away, it was an addictive story, compelling in the best way.
I have thoughts about where I think the next book's story line is going and I'm full of trepidation over it but longing to read it nevertheless. I enjoyed Pepper Winter's writing in this immensely, especially the childhood era of Della and Ren.
I voluntarily read an early copy of this book.
Reviewed for Jo&IsaLoveBooks Blog.
Prohibition Gangsters: The Rise and Fall of a Bad Generation
Book
Master story teller Marc Mappen applies a generational perspective to the gangsters of the...
Modernity Britain: 1957-1962
Book
David Kynaston's history of post-war Britain has so far taken us from the radically reforming Labour...
The Vanishing Irish: Households, Migration, and the Rural Economy in Ireland, 1850-1914
Book
In the years between the Great Famine of the 1840s and the First World War, Ireland experienced a...