just finished reading You Are Not So Smart by David McRaney, pic related.
Does /lit/ think it is a good book?
Also, can you reccomend similar books on the subject?
>>7233009
I recommend this shit all the time here but I'm a big fan of Nassim Taleb's work, esp. Antifragile and Black Swan.
His books use a lot of aphorisms, anecdotes, classical philosophy, and examples from history to illustrate the idea that human beings have better hindsight than foresight, and promotes this way of living and thinking that allows you to take maximal advantage of "good" risk/uncertainty while minimizing the negative.
Taleb is pretty /lit/ and his writing style basically embodies the "smug pepe" image which is hilarious to me. I recommend this book to everyone p. much.
>>7233033
thank you for your recommendation. this is the first non-fiction book i red in ages, and i enjoyed it very much.
if you have any other authors/books to recommend, feel free to do so. kinda got fed with reading stuff like pic related.
>>7233049
No problem man!
Idk about you, but when I was branching out of my beats/punk rock/wannabe Bukowski phase (including reading books like Junky), I started looking into kind of more... I guess philosophical, spiritual type stuff in hopes that it would change my worldview. Maybe you're in the same place?
If so, I highly recommend the book Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell - it takes the form of a long interview that was aired on PBS in the 80s. Basically this guy who'd studied myths and cultures from all times and places found this pattern/journey that all human beings are involved in , citing stuff like the Bible, Star Wars, ancient peoples, and so on.
It gave me this very macroscopic perspective on human history and life. I liked it because I felt a very genuine, almost primordial connection with people that had lived before me while reading it. Maybe you will too!
>>7233074
yeah, you could say that.
also, forgot to say that i like format of this book. you could stop reading it at any time and continue after a month or so, without forgetting important stuff from the book, like plot details, because every chapter if for itself, and is 1-3 pages long.
this works best for me because i don't have much time to read, and sometimes i have to pause for weeks.
do you have anything in similar format? are these books that you've recommended written like this?
i will most probably read them anyway, but i seek books without much "cohesion", if you know what i mean.
I'm not a part of this conversation, but it really is lovely. Take this bump. I know you'll put it to good use.
>>7233091
Antifragile (my favorite one) is basically a series of really short essays with titles like "Do (Small) Wars Save Lives?", "Media-Driven Neuroticism," "Seneca's Barbell," and so on. You can definitely skip around and get a good idea from literally a page or two of reading.
Power of Myth is a long series of interviews, so a question is posed and then Campbell will cite a myth or a story that illustrates his point. It's almost like a podcast in book form (plus it has a lot of dope pictures). Honestly I'd really only recommend this one if you have an inkling or curiosity about the spiritual or religious - but if you do, it's great book to flip through.
Hit the library dude.
>>7233110
also, i hope to find these books in pdf somewhere online. i don't live in an english speaking country, so getting physical version of books written in english is a pain in the ass. on the other hand i prefer reading them in english, even if i could get translated books.
greetings from other corners of the earth, and thanks again.
>>7233128
First result on Google:
http://www.riosmauricio.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Taleb_Antifragile.pdf
Good luck man.
>>7233009
good thread. Antifragile sounds sweet, my /biz/ friend was talking about it one & imagined it to be more of a [something else] but I checked it out and I'm gonna get my hands on a copy, I cannot devour social commentaries any faster.
McRaney's book honestly sounds like shit, I've read enough (way too much) pop-psych to have a gag reflex when it's anywhere near me. Confirmation bias? Learned helplessness? That shit is literally from PSYC 201, I don't see how some pithy sofunny xD author who finagled his way onto the 'buy this/loud graphic design' shelf' and then the discount bin is going to aid my understanding of these concepts whatsoever. Maybe I'm wrong though, haven't actually read the book
nonfiction general?
>>7233110
I enjoyed Campbell's Masks of God series, but seeing The Power of Myth made me hate him. There's something about a grown man fawning over the overblown Buck Rogers serial that is Star Wars and proclaiming it a modern mythological epic of deep spiritual significance that destroys his credibility for me.
>>7235261
is that all it includes? was gonna check it out now i'm not tbqh
