Bookback — 2019
A book-back is just a look back at the books read this year that was the most fun/ impactful/ inspirational/ insightful. I did this last year and want to make it a habit to continue doing this every year. As always, the Goodreads challenge I took up this year was not successful, but I am getting closer to understand the kind of books I like reading and how to choose the books I want to spend time on. I guess it’s a constant process and the idea is to keep trying.
Here is the list of books which I felt had the most influence on me (Do check this for the full list)
The Meaning of It All: Thoughts of a Citizen-Scientist by Richard P. Feynman
This read is a collection of three Feynman lectures titled ‘ The Uncertainty of Science’, ‘ The Uncertainty of Values’, and ‘ This Unscientific Age ‘. He talks about how to apply the ideas and values of science to broader topics like religion, politics or social issues. Feynman was a doubter regarding almost everything and asks everyone to embrace uncertainty. It is only when you cast a doubt on things that you wouldn’t fall into the trap of stagnancy or completed learning. When you think you know the answer, you don’t seek more. The good part was that he was never a cynic, which is the ideal space to find solutions. He strongly argues that science inherently does not have any value, it is the method of application that matters which again boils down to ethics. This is applicable even today on issues like bio-wars, pollution or even religion. These lectures are a great insight into one of the finest minds of science on topics not related to science. Although some of the opinions are outdated and he passed away 30 years ago, he is still a witty and a relevant read.
Memorable quotes:
“Some people say, How can you live without knowing? I do not know what they mean. I always live without knowing. That is easy. How you get to know is what I want to know.” “It is in the admission of ignorance and the admission of uncertainty that there is a hope for the continuous motion of human beings in some direction that doesn’t get confined, permanently blocked, as it has so many times before in various periods in the history of man.” “The third possibility of explanation of the phenomenon is that the young man perhaps doesn’t understand science correctly, that science cannot disprove God, and that a belief in science and religion is consistent.” A Book of Simple Living by Ruskin Bond
In A Book of Simple Living, Ruskin Bond gives us a glimpse of his world in the hills and let us slowly into it with simple insights. In the process, he teaches us why there is beauty in simple things. I feel the simple things are much harder to articulate, it requires a lot more skill and effort to make people ponder about things that are not necessarily complex. Having lived close to nature for about 50 years with his adopted family, he has an eye for strange and beautiful things and opens up fresh perspectives to think about. A collection in the form of poems and short anecdotes, Bond, unlike his other work, conveys in a persuasive manner how life can be slow and content in the hills away from the fast pace of bustling activity. This was simple, beautiful and warm.
Memorable quotes:
“Enough for me that you are beautiful: Beauty possessed diminishes. Better a dream of love Than love’s dream broken; Better a look exchanged Than love’s word spoken. Enough for me that you walk past, A firefly flashing in the dark.” “One sure way to lose the world and everything in it, is to try grasping it.” Being Mortal by Atul Gawande and The Fall by Albert Camus
I wrote something separately about two of the books read in 2019 not mentioned above.
Being Mortal by Atul Gawande: It is an eye-opening book on mortality, the profession of medicine and its deficiencies. In the process, it also touches upon some fundamental life questions surrounding the concept. A book which can instigate a thought in you to think about what really matters in the end.
The Fall by Albert Camus: This was a trippy short read that touches some complex themes in a way that might not be linear or all-explanatory. Classic Camus.
These two are absolute gems that deserve to be read and re-read. Do check them out and let me know what you thought of them.
To better reading,
To changing experiences,
To valuable learning,
To effective unlearning,
Wishing everyone a very happy new year 2020 filled with love and good health.
Originally published at http://mumblingmadrasi.wordpress.com on January 3, 2020.
