Book Summary: The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene
This summary of The 48 Laws of Power outlines every law in Robert Greene’s book. Each chapter of the book establishes one […]
Category: Book Summary
Is “The 48 Laws of Power” Evil?
Is The 48 Laws of Power evil? Yes and no. Reading the book isn’t evil. The laws themselves aren’t evil. But the book is kind of evil.
Book Summary: A Mind for Numbers by Barbara Oakley
A Mind for Numbers is about learning how to learn. Oakley doesn’t just give study tips (though it certainly does include many). She also explains why those study tips or strategies work, and supports that with evidence.
Book Summary: The New New Zealand by Paul Spoonley
Spoonley discusses the demographic challenges facing New Zealand over the next few decades. The book tackles an interesting and neglected topic and its overall message (i.e. that there need to be informed, national discussions about this) seems sensible enough. Unfortunately, however, Spoonley’s writing isn’t great, and he relies too heavily on secondary sources.
Book Summary: Maybe You Should Talk To Someone by Lori Gottlieb
The premise of Maybe You Should Talk to Someone sucked me in. Unless you’re a therapist, you’ll never know what goes on in the therapy room. Even if you’ve been to therapy, you might wonder what other patients talk about in therapy, and what therapists really think of their patients. The premise piqued my curiosity, and Gottlieb delivered.
Book Summary: Doing Good Better by William MacAskill
William MacAskill is one of the founders of the Effective Altruism (EA) movement. In Doing Good Better, he explains the reasoning behind a lot of EA ideas. The EA movement has changed a bit since 2015, when MacAskill wrote the book. But the core ideas in Doing Good Better are still very solid and worth understanding.
Book Summary: The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson
We can’t give a fuck about everything, so we have to choose our fucks carefully. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck suggests how we might make those choices.
Sapiens vs Guns, Germs and Steel
Many people compare Sapiens to Guns Germs and Steel. In my opinion, GGS overall is a better book than Sapiens. But both are worth reading.
Book Summary: The Courage to be Disliked by Fumitake Koga and Ichiro Kishimi
The Courage to be Disliked features a series of conversations between a youth and a philosopher. The philosopher has three central claims, based on the philosophy of Austrian psychiatrist, Alfred Adler: the world is simple, people can change, and everyone can be happy.
Book Summary: Evicted by Matthew Desmond
Evicted takes place in Milwaukee during 2008 and 2009. The author, Desmond, follows 8 different tenant families, their landlords, and the events in their lives related to housing. Their stories are interspersed with facts and statistics about housing and evictions more generally.