Book Reviews
Books are one of the sacred tomes where we can journey through the life of another person from the past. You obtain a glimpse of what they learned to build this creation. Join Kevin on his own path of reading these books as we discuss some of the highlights and lessons from the teachings of others.
New book reviews come out every other Monday.
This book was okay
Freeman Fung’s Travel to Transform explores global citizenship through personal adventures and reflective prompts. While the start lacked groundbreaking insights, the latter chapters on mindset and limitations stood out. A broad, not deep, read—good for reminders, but not a re-read for me. Rating: 2.5/5.
The One Book You Need for Starting a Company
Bullish crypto leader who has a knack for understanding technology. That’s a quick summarization of who Balaji is. He’s a technologist with tons of wisdom, but his views on blockchain and cryptocurrency can be a lot at times for those not within the field.
Eric Jorgenson’s “The Anthology of Balaji” consolidates a lot of this wisdom into one insurmountable tome of wisdom.
The book that fell flat
A triggering book that gaslights you. This is one of the books I would not reread. Although hinted with some beautiful themes and messages, this book screams self-help with someone telling you who you are.
Beyond Individual Dreams
Imagine returning from a long workday to your dream home. The things you have strived for have all come true. Yet, there’s a sense of going through the motions. What’s next? Enter – the second mountain.
Relationship is the driver of change — Community is woven through love-drenched accountability.
Finding Freedom from Alcohol
When was the last time you picked up a drink and thought, “Why am I drinking this?”
This is the exact question Annie Grace explores in her book, “The Naked Mind.” Grace unpacks the role of alcohol in our lives and why she labels it the “enemy.”
On Writing Well
A book you will revisit. The chapters walk through the full journey of a writer. Some chapters are better for starting and others for revising or finishing. Zinsser provides in-depth examples for analyzing written text and says what’s good and bad about them. I skimmed through a lot of it, but did find the morals good for writing my piece. My ratings are as follows: timelessness (5/5), clarity (4.5/5), entertainment (3.5/5), education (4/5). Overall, a ~4/5 read.
Rich AF
This book is FILLED with rich information that makes it an amazing toolkit for navigating finances. Some parts were a bore whereas other sections had snippets of new information to better understand the financial landscape! Vivian’s writing style truly lives up to a BFF hyping you up with finances and was overall a delightful experience.
Retire By 30
Frank breaks down the F.I.R.E. concept deeply and also keeps it high-level for the reader to implement in their own day to day. This book encapsulates the full journey of not only strategies to pivot into, but also different areas and methods to consider. He discusses common pitfalls and overall makes it F.I.R.E. an easily digestible concept for someone new to the space. Overall, a book that is filled with tons of knowledge extracted to produce a high quality masterpiece.
The Most Good You Can Do
Overall, a good book to explore community service and explore how to expand how much good you do in this world by helping others. It covers an expansive set of causes to consider and think about while explaining effective altruism. Some sections dove too deep and didn’t interest me as much leading to a lower rating.
What Makes Love Last
Decent book filled with tests to check in through your relationship. The mathematical theory was backed-up well, but the book itself had a much more research-paperesque vibe to it. Overall, a good read with tidbits of supportive material for building relationships that can be revisited on a case-by-case basis.
Antifragile
One of my favorite books in a long time. This book is statistically built to enhance the courage to make decisions given the variability of nature. The inclusion of graphs and tables prevents additional ways for the reader to understand deep concepts in a very simple way. A fascinating read I would revisit and recommend to anyone.
Time is Now
A comprehensive book outlining the changes in technology and where AI is heading in the future. This book encapsulates the direction and usage of AI well along with what is to come in the future. Raj’s journey includes tidbits of navigating career development. Overall, this book has many informative and valuable pieces of knowledge for innovators and forward-thinkers.
The Book of Boundaries
This book is a boatload of different scenarios for you to set boundaries in your life. This led to it feeling a bit redundant while going through it. Some chapters may resonate, whereas others are less so due to the circumstances we’re all in. Overall, a good guidebook, but not something that stands out too much.
Bird by Bird
A quick read with insightful notes throughout for any writer or creative. There are aspects of the deeper meaning of writing that resonate well wherever you are in life. It covers all the dimensions from writer’s block to the first draft to fully encapsulate the writing process.
Grit: The Power of Passion & Perseverance
Fascinating book that explains grit in 3 important scopes: what it is, how to cultivate it internally, and how to grow it externally. It’s one of those books that are good for a pick me up after hardship and pushes you to continue to persevere through a busy season in life. What fascinated me most was the last section of growing grit externally. The book transitioned into more of a parenting book and is a great read for all ages.
Bloodlands
A difficult book that takes a long time to digest. This tome was the first of books I didn’t finish due to the depth of its vocabulary and the amount of detail included. Overall, it’s insightful for a historian, but not something I would recommend to the casual reader.
The Creative Act: A Way of Being
A tome providing a vastly different perspective into art & creativity. Rick Rubin’s writing is concise and to the point with chapters of less than 10 pages. This book is one where you would want to return to a chapter every so often through a creative project. Rubin tells concepts very well including real-life examples consistently, but some chapters lacked this imagery. Nevertheless, a transformative read overall.
The Denial of Death
This is one of those books that challenges your whole perception of reality. The vocabulary and discussion points are one where you will have to sit and pause to think about them for a bit. Concepts not typically discussed are brought up and it is an uncomfortable read at times. Overall, a book I would revisit again to have that same stimulation.
Being Mortal
A deep book that makes you face the realities of old age and the tough decisions that need to be made. Gawande presents questions and stories vividly of what questions to ask when you have such little time remaining. This book is one that, while slow at times, is a reminder of what truly matters.
Skid Road
Insightful book on the history of Seattle. Stories of the development of Harborview Medical Center, the University of Washington, and other large institutions were eye-opening even for someone who lived here. The stories tended to drag on with added information and while thought-provoking was sometimes boring.