Bookish version of pdotb@todon.eu
This link opens in a pop-up window
46% complete! pdotb has read 24 of 52 books.
A case for friendship as a radical practice of love, courage, and trust, and seven strategies that pave the way …
"This fantastically varied and exciting collection celebrates the great Japanese short story, from its modern …
This, then, was the scene that had lived in the fondest part of my memory for so many years. In none of its details had I found anything to wonder at. And then one day -- in fact, just two or three days ago -- as I was gazing blankly at the view from my window, it struck me with such force that, for a moment, I was unable to breathe. Peaches in the winter? Frogs and mud snails in the winter? How could I have failed to notice that until now? And, stranger still, what had inspired me -- possessed me -- at this one moment to seize upon the vital clue? For it was this that lay bare the hoax that memory had played on me year after year. Now, for the first time, I saw the wildly impossible connection that memory had made: carting a load of peaches on a cold winter night! Nowadays, perhaps. But back then? Unthinkable.
— Penguin Book of Japanese Short Stories by Haruki Murakami, Jay Rubin (Page 193)
Wonderful reflection on the nature of memory, by Abe Akira
"This fantastically varied and exciting collection celebrates the great Japanese short story, from its modern …
For his part, my father would have found it a stain on the family honour were his son to become known as a reporter or a clerk or a servant or some other lowly worker. 'Fortunately we have a spare room,' he said, 'and food. You can just live here quietly and keep to yourself.' With that, he brought the discussion to a close.
— Penguin Book of Japanese Short Stories by Haruki Murakami, Jay Rubin (Page 70)
Living the dream...
Two activist journalists present a progressive, intersectional approach to the vital question: What can we do about antisemitism?
Antisemitism is …
How can we respond urgently and effectively to the ecological crisis—and stay sane doing it?
This landmark work is simultaneously …
How can we respond urgently and effectively to the ecological crisis—and stay sane doing it? …
Content warning climate crisis
Preceding quote aside, I really liked this. Good discussion of the climate emergency, but in the context of the other environmental crises, especially extinctions. Also does a good job of tying in the intersection with social justice concerns. Somewhat critical of capitalism, if not as much as I'd like :) Particularly good on the failures of mainstream Western Buddhism to deal with wider issues, commenting that it can be overly concerned with individual transformation, not structural, and quotes Loyal Rue talking of "cosmological dualism" and "individual salvation". Comments that socially-engaged Buddhism of all sorts really struggles to get support, both people and money. Reminded me a little of reading "McMindfulness". While there's lots to like here, I was disappointed to see no footnotes and no bibliography, which feels weird in a book that leans on, and even cites liberally, the work of others. Also not bowled over by some of the quotes. Maybe I'm overly judgemental, but I think we can write a book about Buddhism and just skip over Chogham Trungpa, and seeing a Paul Kingsnorth quote is always particularly jarring.
How can we respond urgently and effectively to the ecological crisis—and stay sane doing it? …
Content warning ableism
When we realize that the world is a mutual, interdependent, cooperative enterprise, that human beings are all mutual friends in the process of birth, old age, suffering, and death, then we can build a noble, even a heavenly environment. If our lives are not based on this truth then we'll all perish. Our species has never been separate, just (as Thomas Berry puts it) "autistic".
— Ecodharma: Buddhist Teachings for the Ecological Crisis by David Loye (Page 115)
Ugh. Beautiful quote from Buddhadasa Bhikkhu, and then... that.
The story of the recent uprisings that sought to change the world — and what comes next
From 2010 to …
The story of the recent uprisings that sought to change the world — and what …
Really good as a journalistic account of the major protests of the 2010s, combining historical background with chronologies of the protests and lots of interviews with those involved. Significantly skewed towards Brazil, where the author lived for a number of years. Somewhat weaker on analysis, besides the impression that leaderless horizontalism can lead to a protest 'succeeding', but then just opening up space for someone more organized (and, often, more right-wing and/or authoritarian) to sweep in. Apparently I need to read Rodrigo Nunes next :)
"This fantastically varied and exciting collection celebrates the great Japanese short story, from its modern origins in the nineteenth century …
How can we respond urgently and effectively to the ecological crisis—and stay sane doing it?
This landmark work is simultaneously …
@Flauschbuch@bookrastinating.com I loved the book, but agree about the grim parts. I'm reading it for a second time and just skipping over those, and it makes for a very different experience.
