Gil & Alys Cunningham Mystery #3: The Merchant's Mark by Pat McIntosh

Read: 10 December, 2010

Gil Cunningham is eagerly awaiting a shipment of books. But when the barrel that was supposed to contain literature turns out to have a human head floating in brine instead, he and his companions become enmeshed in yet another mystery.

Another great addition to the series!

There's a bit more supernatural stuff (a ghost this time), but it's still manageable in quantity.

I like that Gil's station changes between the books. Each book is an isolated mystery, of course, but the character development is continuous throughout the series. I've really enjoyed watching Gil's relationship with Alys grow and change - which it does in a delightfully realistic and sensible way - as well as their accumulation of companions - first a baby, then a dog. I look forward to reading the next books in the series!

The Men Who Stare At Goats by Jon Ronson

Read: 7 July, 2011

I really want to categorize this book as fiction; and, in a sane world, I would. Unfortunately...

It begins in 1983,  when Major General Albert Stubblebine III (a truly Dickensian name), upon realizing that both his body and the wall are made up of atoms and that atoms are mostly made up of empty space, tries to walk through a wall.

Starting from Stubblebine's sore nose, Ronson takes the reader through a brief history of the US military's more insane moments. He lulled me into a sense of "oh, that happened in '70s, but it would never happen today" with stories of men staring at goats to make their hearts stop (and, when goats aren't available, the odd hamster would do) and a First Earth Battalion that could end conflict with their "sparkling eyes."

But then he gets into the 'War on Terror' and the horrific acts at Abu Ghraib.

The most difficult part of reading The Men Who Stare At Goats is to remember that this is only, as the subtitle says, about a "small group of men" who happen to be placed in some key positions. It isn't representative of the army as a whole. The problem is that each of these "highly placed" men have subordinates in a culture that does not tolerate dissent - even when the orders are quite obviously insane.

Throughout, Ronson remains very objective. He allows his subjects, and their beliefs, to speak for themselves. This is an amazing feat when writing a book about men who believe that they can walk through walls or stare goats to deaths.

The tone of the book seems somewhat rambly - jumping back and forth through time and skipping from subject to subject - but it all makes sense by the end, when the whole is tied together and the influence of Jim Channon's First Earth Battalion Operations Manual is made clear. And, really, this is the story of that book - of its history and its legacy.

Men Who Stare At Goats appears to be meticulously researched. Certainly, it comes through in Ronson's writing just how difficult certain people and facts were to find. And, although some of the connections he draws are speculative (or based on "wink wink" statements from his informants), he does make the case that it's all at least plausible if not factual. I found it to be a very interesting and thought-provoking read, even if my faith in humanity requires that I remain somewhat provisional in my trust of Ronson's depictions.

Assuming that it is all (or mostly) true, though, I'd be very interested in a follow up in coming years as to the effect of the book on military policies and strategies. Has Men Who Stare At Goats embarrassed the leadership sufficiently to cause a change? Will it spell the end of First Earth Battalion's influence? Or will it increase its popularity?

Watership Down by Richard Adams

Read: 8 June, 2009

When Fiver senses that a great danger is coming to the warren, only his brother and a few others believe him. Unable to convince the other rabbits, this small band leaves on a journey in search of safety that takes them through farmyards, across roads and rivers, and into warrens with very different cultures.

This is an absolutely fantastic book. The adventure story alone is well worth the read, but the amateur mythicist in me was especially impressed with the construction of an entire rabbit culture and religious system, language included. Especially impressive is how familiar and, yet, distinctly alien the rabbit culture is. This rarely felt like a book about people that happens to be set in a rabbit setting. Rather, this was a book about rabbits, only slightly anthropomorphism. The characters and their culture retain a great deal of what can only be called 'rabbitiness.'

Most books get at least one aspect right. Some get a few things right. When this happens, the book may be called masterful, or great. But Watership Down is one of the very few books that tempt me to use the word 'perfection.' This is a masterpiece and I think that anyone who hasn't read it yet is somewhat impoverished. There's something about it that just touches the Jungian collective subconscious. This is the hero with a thousand faces pulled off in a way that feels natural.

Though marketed as a children's book (although perhaps a little too gruesome/frightening for younger kids), Watership Down is a must read for adults as well.

Learning everything you need to know about a person by looking at their bookshelves

I always love going to people's houses for the first time, because there's just so much you can learn about a person by looking at their living environment. By the same token, I'm often a little shy to have people in my own home because it makes me feel vulnerable and exposed, like I'm letting them see a bit too much of my psyche.

One of the most revealing areas of the home is the bookshelf. Here are a few of my observations (to be taken with a grain of salt, of course - this is, as psychics say, for "entertainment purposes only"):

No books: None at all? Very rare, but I've seen it. Generally people who watch a whole lot of TV and don't have a whole lot of respect for intellectual pursuits (for example, they probably don't know how to play chess, or they may think that a post-secondary degree is something one gets to get ahead in their career rather than an end in itself).

No shelves, but a few books lying around: Books may be found by the couch or on the nightstand. There will almost certainly be at least one in the bathroom (although some people hide their bathroom books when company is coming over in an effort to convince people that they don't poop). These people fall into two categories, and you can generally tell the difference based on the type of books you find. Some are simply casual readers, similar to the no books people. Others are avid library-borrowers (either for ideological or for economic reasons). Either way, you will need to pay attention to the types of books you find to make a better diagnosis.

Reading material tends to be magazines: Magazines are obvious indicators of hobbies and interests. If you find magazines, you've struck gold. A "girly" mag like Cosmo tells you that your friend is either single or probably doesn't have a long-standing beau (or, if she does, chances are that they fight like cats and dogs). A home-decorating mag tells you that your friend is either about to start renovating, or is the kind of person who is never quite satisfied with life - leaping into pursuit of the next goal when the last one has barely been accomplished.

Reading material tends to be pulp: Pulp comes in a variety of forms, from detective novels, to spy novels, to romance, &etc. Pulp books may run in the 300+ pages, but they are very fast reads and offer no challenge. People who read pulp tend to feel that reading is something one should do, but they don't value it enough to put a lot of effort into it. Pulp readers may be career professionals with very little downtime available, for example.

Lots of classics, but no contemporary pieces that aren't on high school reading lists: There's a Dickens but no Gaskell, there's Frederick Douglass but no Equiano. Check the spines and you're likely to find them uncracked (or, if your friend is particularly fastidious about keeping up appearances, they are cracked too uniformly to have happened naturally by reading). These are the people who value intellectualism, but who aren't willing to put in the work to cultivate it in themselves. These people are probably insecure about their intelligence, so they surround themselves with the gaudy trappings of it. They may have read these books in high school, or at least the cliff notes, but they haven't opened them since. You'll make a very good impression if you comment admiringly at their collection, drawing attention to how smart they must be to have all these books.

Lots of classics and lots of pulp: A frequent mix, the standard high schooler's reading list and a bunch of junk food for the brain. See point above.

An indiscriminate mixture: I'm often given books by friends and family members who have typecast me as "the one who loves books" but don't know me (or books) well enough to figure out which ones I might like. I'll also sometimes accept second hand books in bulk from friends (or garage sale dealers) and sort through them once I get home. To get rid of undesirable excess (duplicates, abridgements, crap), I'll occasionally put ups ads and pass the books on to new homes. From time to time, I'll get offers for the whole lot. One such person told me, as she was picking up her boxes, that she "loves books." These are people who value books and reading, but who don't have the taste to discriminate between good reading and bad reading, and have no preferences of their own. These people are similar to those who own classics and pulp - they've identified reading as a desirable trait, and they want to convey that they are readers. As a redeeming feature, they at least they lack the pretentiousness of the classics-owners.

A wide variety, but with some common themes: This person is an avid reader who reads out of enjoyment rather than a sense that it is what one should do. This person has preferences, seeking out certain kinds of books over others. Unfortunately, if too eclectic, the variety found in their reading habits can probably also be found in their other pursuits. This person may have spent a year learning to play the piano before getting bored and picking up the violin (opting instead for the recorder shortly thereafter).

Overwhelmingly in one genre: There may be a little variety, but most of the books this person owns fall into a certain genre or category. For example, this person might have a few novels and a whole lot of books about astronomy. This person is focused, perhaps even obsessed. Unlike the fickle individual we saw above, this person sees things through. This is someone who played a single instrument all through grade school. If they started a post-secondary education, they probably finished it (or are currently). I hope that you share some interests because this relationship could get real boring real fast if not!

This isn't a precise science and there are several confounding factors. For example, when multiple people live in one home, it can be difficult to determine which books belong to which person, possibly leading to a misdiagnosis. I find that this is a bigger issue for roommates than it is for couples since couples (especially if they've been together for a long time) tend to gravitate towards each other in their personalities and interests. Gifts can also throw you off, as the person may be displaying a parent's tastes, for example, rather than their own.

So, what kind of reader are you?

Gil & Alys Cunningham Mystery #2: The Nicholas Feast by Pat McIntosh

Read: 3 December, 2010

Soon after the events in Harper's Quine, Gil Cunningham participates in his old university's Nicholas Feast. But during the day, a young student is found dead. Because of his success in catching the killer in Harper's Quine, Gil is asked to solve this murder as well. Joined by his love, Alys, and her father, he immerses himself in politics and espionage to find justice for a student no one seems to have liked.

I bought this book, along with the next two in the series, as soon as I had finished the first one, but I didn't read it for quite a while. In my silliness, I loved Harper's Quine so much that I was afraid of burning through the series too fast!

This was an excellent addition to the series! Once again, the mystery was interesting, and I love the relationship between Gil and Alys (not to mention Alys's father). I'm not a fan of the supernatural element (the titular Quine from the last novel seems to be psychic - although like most psychics, his pronouncements are vague enough to be of absolutely no use), but it's low-key enough that it can be easily ignored. Besides, the rest of the story more than makes up for it.

BlackBerry's PlayBook and Kobo - A Review

Not too long ago, I wrote a post about how resistant I am to the idea of eReading. Then fate decided to be funny and arranged for me to get a BlackBerry PlayBook for free (through work, long story). The PlayBook comes with Kobo, an eReader software.

I received it yesterday, so these are my impressions after only a couple hours of playing with it.

[caption id="attachment_1051" align="alignleft" width="150" caption="The young prince plays with his future inheritance..."][/caption]

Availability of books

Kobo has the ability to sort its site so that it displays only free books. I'm pretty cheap, so that's what I went for straight away. There isn't a huge selection, but it's pretty good and will keep even a speedy reader occupied for a good amount of time. There are quite a few Star Wars books, and a reasonable selection of what looks to be either Christian books or pulp romances - it's hard to tell by the covers and titles.

But more interestingly, there's a fairly good collection of classics. I was able to find quite a few books that I've been wanting to read, so that was rather nice. If you want more, they have a fairly good selection of books for under $10.

Text presentation

One of the things that I complained about in my post about eReaders is that I remember books far better when they are in book format, as opposed to the types of pages that you get in a Word document, for example. Kobo does its best by giving the option of displaying books as double pages (or, if you prefer, as single pages). This gives something of a book-y feel, although they still haven't solved the issue of being able to feel, with your hands, how far into the book you are.

There are other ways that you can manipulate the display, such as changing the font style (serif or non), altering the brightness, or, best of all, changing the font size. As I get older and my eyes start to fail I think that this will be the best argument in favour of eReaders.

Page turner

They clearly tried to replicate the book experience. Turning the page involves actually turning the page - or, rather, tapping the screen in the direction that you would like to navigate. I like it better than scrolling, but it does feel a little gimmicky.

There's also a quick button back to the table of contents, so it's easy enough to jump from one section of the book to another. That being said, page numbers are gone, so referencing could be a problem.

Kobo automatically remembers your place in each book, so it's quite easy to pick up where you left off in a previous reading session.

Referencing

As I noted above, page numbers are missing. This is a pretty serious issue if you're the kind of person who likes to take notes while you read. It wouldn't be so bad if there were some kind of marginal notes feature, but there isn't that I could find.

The only option is what Kobo calls "dogears." By tapping the upper corner of the screen, you can "fold" the page to leave a place mark. These can then be searched in their own list to make navigation between your favourite passages a bit easier. It's something, but it really isn't enough for people like me who are in the habit of marking up books.

Battery life

One thing you don't have to worry about with paper books is how long the batteries will last. I haven't really pushed the boundaries, but I did keep it on for about two hours while writing this review and the battery icon showed only a sliver lost. I take that as a pretty good sign.

Conclusion

It seems nice to have, especially since the PlayBook can be used for a fairly wide range of things. For example, it has Word installed, so I transferred over my notes for my Bible reading project, which will make it a bit easier to work on while "on the go." There are also some apps available for free, and the PlayBook can be used to surf the internet. I'm definitely glad to have it and I think I'll get some use out of it.

But I got it for free. From my perspective, it would have to be pretty awful for me not to like it in at least some ways. But this model costs $700 in Canadian stores. At that price, it's definitely not worth buying just as an eReader, and I think it would be hard to justify even with all the other features factored in.

Dracula by Bram Stoker

Read: 7 February, 2010

I took a course during my university career on Science Fiction and Fantasy, taught by a heavily accented Ukrainian woman with very little qualification in the subject other than personal interest. The class structure was very informal. We had a reading list, but the syllabus included notes for each book where watching the movie would be a suitable alternative. Dracula was one such book, although the syllabus stipulated that only one version would be acceptable.

This was the same year that I was taking Victorian Literature and Colonial Literature, both courses assigning full length novels on a bi-weekly basis. I read so much that I got eye-fatigue and had to wear glasses for the rest of the year. I read so much that one of the professors (the Victorian Lit one) apologized to my mother at graduation. If I could lessen me reading load by one book, all the better.

I'm glad that I took advantage of the movie option because  I was so harried by schoolwork at the time that I was reading far too superficially - skimming to intake just enough for the tests but not enough for enjoyment. So I was able to approach the book a few years later with a clean impression and all the time chance and nature give us.

I didn't realize from the movie or pop culture that the book is written entirely in letter, news articles, and diary entries. In the story, this style is explained when one of the main characters collects all the story's fragments from the other characters and compiles them chronologically (so that they can examine and compare what they know so far about the story's baddy). It's done wonderfully, adding a sense of realism to the story.

The epistolary style is rarely done well. With the more usual narrative style, characterization is easier to fudge. But when characters are given their own voices, it suddenly becomes much more obvious if the author fails to give them unique personalities - or, just as bad, tries to differentiate them with the use of cheap gimmicks. But Bram Stoker pulls it off perfectly, making Dracula the single best example of the multiple narrator style that I've ever seen.

I really can't emphasize how much I enjoyed this book. It's brilliantly written, the plot is interesting, the characters have depth, the suspense is maintained, and there's an actual ending (something of a rarity among those easily-distracted Victorians). Other than a few points of plot, it's really nothing like any of the pop culture we're all familiar with.

The Guinea Pig Diaries: My Life As An Experiment by A.J. Jacobs

Read: 28 June, 2011

I listened to the audio book version of this. I'm finding that my ability to hold books is being seriously hampered by Captain Wiggly's wild gesticulations. And it's only gotten worse now that he's started teething and requires holding at all times. So, at the recommendations of several friends, I'm giving the audio reading experience a try.

In The Guinea Pig Diaries, A.J. Jacobs conducts a number of experiments on himself. For a while, he tries to life according to George Washington's code of conduct, he tries to scrub his brain of all irrational thinking, he outsources much of his life, and he dabbles with radical honesty.

Since the book is episodic, with each experiment serving as a discreet section, I thought it might be best to give my thoughts on each separately.

What would George Washington Do

In this segment, Jacobs tries to incorporate George Washington's Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior. In the process, he learns about the 'founding father' and learns a new respect for Washington.

I found the history of this piece to be very interesting, but it may have been the weakest of Jacobs's experiments in terms of its impact on his life. Keeping a straight face and adopting good posture isn't exactly revolutionary. Ha ha! See what I did there?

The Unitasker

After a failed multitasking attempt causes Jacobs to lose driving privileges, he decides to experiment with unitasking - focusing on a single task at a time. This section had quite a bit of relevance for me as I'm almost never doing fewer than at least two things at a time. Even while I'm playing with the baby, I'm generally reading a book or even getting dishes done at the same time!

The human brain can't multitask, says Jacobs. What we end up doing instead is simply switching back and forth between our tasks. This is inefficient because there's some "now where was I?" time between each switch. He argues that we're actually faster and more productive if we simply stop and focus on one thing at a time. From personal experience, I find that I get more enjoyment out of the task too, because it's actually "there" mentally. It wasn't a great chapter, but he made his point and I think I'm provisionally convinced.

I Think You're Fat

In this section, Jacobs gives radical honesty a try. The concept is that you must tell the truth, all the time. All the time. Lying by omission is also out. If you're a fan of gimmicky detective shows, you may have encountered the concept of radical honesty on Lie To Me (featuring Mr. Orange). Personally, my first exposure came when my brother-in-law started practising it.

Jacobs's experience seems fairly similar to what I've seen first hand. There are quite a few occasions where it serves everyone well. It gets uncomfortable topics out in the open, initiating a dialogue that can actually fix the inter-personal problem. It can also help achieve short-term goals by forcing you to ask for the things you want. But on the other hand, it can also cause quite a bit of negative feeling.

For the project, Jacobs meets with radical honesty's inventor, Dr. Brad Blanton. During his description, he mentions that Dr. Blanton has been married multiple times. This is shocking given Blanton's claim that radical honesty "leads to intimacy in relationships."

And that's my main observation of radical honesty - the disconnect between the claimed benefits and the reality of its practice. Jacobs also points out a psychological quirk that voicing thoughts solidifies them in our minds. So, feeling a little down in the dumps about your job today? Vent about it and your opinion of your job will actually become more negative overall, even on the good days.

That's why I'm much more in favour of a little thing I like to call radical positivism. Always say nice things until you train your brain to believe them. This doesn't exclude constructive criticism, by the way. It's merely a policy against whining.

240 Minutes of Fame

Jacobs happens to look a great deal like an actor I'd never heard of but who apparently had a little spot in the sun a couple years ago. When the actor decided not to attend one of these fancy Hollywood award ceremonies, Jacobs attended - letting people think that he was the actor.

He soon realized just how intoxicating fame can be, and how constant praise skews an individual's perception of reality. I quite enjoyed this section because it pointed out just how fallible we are and how quickly any one of us, no matter how nice, could turn into one of these tantruming celebrity monsters.

My Outsourced Life

This may have been the best section, if only for the entertainment value. Jacobs uses firms in India to outsource parts of his life. It starts out fairly normal, outsourcing research for his articles and other menial tasks. But then he starts pushing the boundaries, even outsourcing a fight with his wife.

The lesson for this section is a good one. He starts off with what I think is a fairly common perception in the West that the people we're outsourcing to are somewhat brutish. They're great for simple, mindless work like the call centre screen reading that passes for tech support. But he soon realizes that his virtual assistants are every bit as intelligent and creative as American workers - if not more so.

The Rationality Project

This project struck a chord with me because it's something that I've been working on for a few years now. In this project, Jacobs tries to eliminate as much irrational thinking from his brain as possible.

What he learns is rather similar to what I've learn, that simply being rational doesn't necessarily eliminate subjectivity, nor does it allow us to find "correct" answers. For example, he experiments with toothpaste - does the rational mind choose based on cavity protection or taste? Well, as one of his sources points out, 10 years without a cavity may be worse than 9 years without a cavity but spent enjoying a much more pleasant brushing experience. Even though the latter is the "wrong" choice based solely on the cavity protection metric, the actual answer is far more complex and involves subjective preference.

That's not to say that rationality is bunk. There are unquestionably "wrong" answers that we should make every effort to purge from our brains. But what Jacobs learns is that it's perfectly rational to be an emotional human being and that subjective experiences are legitimate.

My life as a beautiful woman

This section was an extremely close runner-up for entertainment value. For this project, Jacobs tries online dating on behalf of his very attractive nanny. What he finds is fairly expected, that saying "no" to forceful advances all day gets tiresome and that there are some really mean manipulative jerks out there.

To be fair, his experience as a beautiful woman is only online, so he's meeting a large collection of the scummiest individuals in high concentration without additional worries such as physical safety. As a result, his ability to really learn from the episode is somewhat stunted. But still, his writing style brings the adventure to life in a really funny way.

The truth about nakedness

[caption id="attachment_858" align="alignright" width="150" caption="Included for your edification"][/caption]

This is the deep feminist piece that "My life as a beautiful woman" couldn't be. Jacobs's job is to edit an article by actress Mary-Louise Parker on the experience of doing a naked photoshoot. Additionally, Parker is asked to illustrate her piece with a nude photo. But Parker, brilliantly, turns it around by only agreeing to write the article if Jacobs will also pose for a nude photo, which she gets to choose for the final print.

Jacobs isn't writing any kind of deep analysis, but the lesson of sexual objectification does get conveyed. He experiences the shame of being exposed, the loss of control of having someone else get to choose which picture makes the cut, the emphasis on status when his shoot isn't catered as nicely as Parker's, etc.

Whipped (a.k.a. the perfect spouse)

For this experiment, Jacobs vows to be the perfect spouse for one whole month, doing everything his wife (who is a saint!) says. As expected, he quickly learns to appreciate just how much she does for the household. As Jacobs puts it, she was doing chores that he didn't even know existed!

Though treated lightly, he brings attention to a very serious issue with our "post-feminist" society - that women are now working as much as men, but are still expected to come home and do the bulk of the housework and childcare. Not an issue in my household, thankfully, because my husband is every bit the feminist I am (and a fabulous cook to boot!).

Conclusion

I really enjoyed The Guinea Pig Diaries. As expected, this isn't an in-depth treatment of any of the subjects Jacobs covers, and the lessons he draws are, for the most part, fairly superficial. But what he does is provide a light, entertaining, and humorous introduction to a wide range of social and global issues. There's plenty of food for thought, served with a spoonful of sugar.

It works well for what it is.

Maigret et le marchand de vin by Georges Simenon

Read: 21 July, 2009

According to my dear ol' mum, bless her French book-reading heart, there's an entire series of Maigret detective novels. For my own part, I've only encountered this one, so I'll have to take her word for it. In this episode, the owner of a wine distribution company has been murdered and Jules Maigret is called in to investigate.

Le marchand de vin is rather different from many of the detective novels I usually read. For one thing, it's an actual detective novel - in that the person doing the investigating is a detective in the police force. This introduces a rather different dynamic than I'm accustomed to. My detectives are usually sucked in to a mystery, often reluctantly, and half the story is trying find some way to convince the authorities to serve justice. But here, Maigret has the benefit of the authorities being on his side, but he's also constrained by this. There are rules to follow, and tactics that are simply off-limits.

I enjoyed how dependent this novel was on conversation. The focus was very little on the discovery of clues, but rather on the interactions between Maigret and his various witnesses and suspects. The whole book reads more like a play than anything else. As a result, character development is emphasized, but also somewhat more subtle. We're rarely told what characters are feeling, but are left to guess based on their verbal responses. This is fairly common in French literature, but I read so little of it that it made for a refreshing change.

As far as the mystery itself goes, it's fairly run-of-the-mill. It's written from a local's perspective, so it doesn't have the charm of otherness that Daphne du Maurier's Don't Look Now had, for example. Maigret is not especially "quirky" like Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe. In other words, there's no gimmick to the story. It's just a plain detective story, albeit of a higher calibre than most. It's well worth the read for fans of the genre, if only for exposure to how good an ordinary detective without some extraordinary selling feature can be.

Gaius Ruso mystery #4: Caveat Emptor by Ruth Downie

Read: 22 June, 2011

A pregnant Iceni woman, a descendent of the fearsome Boudica, bursts into Britain's procurator's office claiming that her husband has been murdered and did not steal the tax money. Ruso, freshly back from Gaul and in need of work - any work - takes on the job of investigator. What he uncovers exposes the delicate peace between Rome and even the most "civilized" British tribes.

The Ruso series is written in a fairly straightforward and often humorous style. Ruso's (and occasionally Tilla's) commentary is injected into the narrative to give the series a sort of deadpan comedic element that is just so very British. But despite its similarity to other series, such as Ellis Peters's Cadfael, Caveat Emptor lacks much of the innocence. There is a hopelessness to the series, a reminder that justice is not always served and that desired outcomes are not always possible.

Caveat Emptor is similar enough to the rest of the series to satisfy the fan, while different enough to stand on its own merits. Downie has proven that she is not to be a "one hit wonder," and is more than capable of creating a sustainable series.

The mystery itself is good enough, but the best part of Downie's work is the characterisations. Main characters, like Ruso and Tilla (and even Valens) are complex and distinctive, likeable despite their many flaws. Side characters are similar enough to archetypes to be recognizable, but they provide a lovely illusion of unexplored depth.

This is another great addition to the series and I look forward to reading the next one!

The Moral Landscape by Sam Harris

Read: 22 October, 2010

The basic premise of The Moral Landscape is that the well-being of sentient creatures is the proper measuring stick to determine morality. He convincingly argues that defining morality simply as that which God likes or dislikes is absurd, in the same way as defining it based on the wishes of a king would be absurd. But on the other side of the debate, the idea that morality is a natural offshoot from our evolution as social animals, merely describes an 'is' and does not allow us to argue for or against the 'shoulds' we may encounter in our navigation of ethics. The well-being of creatures sufficiently aware to care about well-being is the only measure that makes any sense.

In the book, Harris anticipates and responds to a number of criticisms. The greatest of these is the question of whether well-being is even worth valuing in the first place - what makes this, above all others, the concept that ought to be at the centre of this debate? To answer this, Harris compares well-being to health. Why should we value health? None of us would think twice about calling someone insane who argues that health ought to be defined as weight as much as possible, so why do claim that there is no way to say whether a patriarchal system in which half the population is kept under constant bondage is any worse than a society in which genders are viewed as equal?

He also brings up the idea of neuroscience - that we will one day be able to scan people's brains to determine what truly contributes to well-being, and what people have merely been acculturated into thinking it does.

I've been surprised by how poor the book's reception has been among the atheist community. It seems that many have fallen into the trap Harris anticipated, arguing that there is no reason to value well-being above any other criteria. But for my own part, I'm convinced. Harris challenges his readers to think of any criteria that would be equally valuable in resolving ethical issues, and I've been unable to think of any. It seems as obvious to me that well-being is the only foundation that makes any sense at all. Once we accept this premise, it seems obvious to me that ethical questions could potentially be resolved with right or wrong answers.

A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick

Thanks for the recommendation, Kristin!

Read: 3 October, 2010

In a small Wisconsin town, Ralph Truitt, a wealthy business man, places an advert in the papers for a reliable wife. After carefully reviewing the applicants, he finally selects Catherine Land. Now he waits in the bitter cold for her train to arrive. But when she disembarks, Truitt sees that she looks nothing like her picture. And so begins a relationship fraught with deception.

This is a novel of bad and broken people trying to find hope in each other. It's a sad story, set in a bleak and unwelcoming landscape. It was difficult reading at times, with characters I couldn't help but like despite knowing that I shouldn't, doing things I know I should disapprove of.

The writing style was excellent, very accessible. It's always lovely to be able to focus on the story without having to worry about meandering sentences. The characterisations were excellent. I really felt as though I were getting to know Catherine and Ralph, as though they were real people with complex goals and emotions that exist independently of the author.

This is a fantastic book to read on a cold wintry day!

The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov

Read: June, 2004

The devil has arrived in Moscow, and he's there to wreak havoc. Meanwhile, a writer obsesses over Pontius Pilate while a young woman obsesses over him.

I read Master and Margarita for a course I was taking in university, and it was one of my favourite books of the whole year. I found the obsession with Pontius Pilate to be rather contagious. I was taking another course on the New Testament, so I was able to get it out of my system by writing a rather lengthy essay on him.

This was all a couple years ago, so my memory of the book is a little hazy, but I remember finding it very funny and interesting, mixed in with that depressingly lethargic outlook on life, society, and government so common to Russian writing.