About 50 years ago I read A Child Called Noah: A Family Journey. Recently my sister and I were talking about autism and she asked if I had read this bAbout 50 years ago I read A Child Called Noah: A Family Journey. Recently my sister and I were talking about autism and she asked if I had read this book by Noah's brother which brings Noah's life into the 21st century. I borrowed a kindle version through my library.
It was not what I'd expected. I usually find I connect well with memoirs even when the person lives a very different life from mine. Not here. Karl bored me with elaborate description of the armies he pitted against each other as a child and his drug use as a teen. Then it skips to his stint in rehab as an adult and what turns out to be a dream sequence where Noah has mostly recovered, before a chapter on Noah's true situation in the early 2000's.
I think Karl Greenfield tried to mash together 2 or 3 different concepts. If I hadn't been curious to know what happened to Noah as an adult, I doubt if I would have finished the book....more
Zeke Faux travels the world chasing down people involved in crypto without ever finding someone using it effectively for anything other than criminal Zeke Faux travels the world chasing down people involved in crypto without ever finding someone using it effectively for anything other than criminal activities. It appears that the value for crime is what is keeping it going. The "Staggering Fall" part refers to a number of players and coins that have failed. However, the crypto craze continues with new devotees. ...more
An interesting memoir centered around some of the cases Matt Murphy tried. Bringing someone to justice is not just about figuring out who did the crimAn interesting memoir centered around some of the cases Matt Murphy tried. Bringing someone to justice is not just about figuring out who did the crime but requires proving it beyond a reasonable doubt. ...more
I skipped through this one reading parts of various sections. The first part is mostly about gambling strategy. When I'd had enough of that I moved onI skipped through this one reading parts of various sections. The first part is mostly about gambling strategy. When I'd had enough of that I moved on to an a section on risk takers in Silicon Valley. A lot of it was pretty interesting but it is a long book and I didn't finish it before the library wanted it back. ...more
I have read a number of books on aging. Mostly I have been interested in the experience of dealing with aging parents and now myself at 75. This book I have read a number of books on aging. Mostly I have been interested in the experience of dealing with aging parents and now myself at 75. This book is more about the science of aging and what people are trying to keep from aging so not really what I was looking for.
I found the last couple chapters most interesting. What would happen if most people lived to be 120? Population would grow if we all stayed around another 30 or 40 years. Could retirement ages be increased on short notice if medical science discovered an anti-aging treatment? Most people work for about 40 years and are retired for about 20. The system would fall apart if we worked for 40 years then were retired for 60....more
This book is somewhat academic but very accessible. The many short sections with bold faced titles allowed me to find the sections I was most interestThis book is somewhat academic but very accessible. The many short sections with bold faced titles allowed me to find the sections I was most interested in. To be honest I have shelved this book as did-not-finish because I skipped over some sections. I did read well over half the book so feel qualified to give it a rating.
I am on the liberal side of the political spectrum but have been concerned about "curing" the feeling of being in the wrong body at puberty so wanted to read something that wasn't all about accepting a person's gender declaration no matter how young they are or little they have done to modify their body....more
I've read a number of books about cults but never one that was not religious based. The Sullivanians were a lefty "therapy" based group with a huge seI've read a number of books about cults but never one that was not religious based. The Sullivanians were a lefty "therapy" based group with a huge sexual component dictated by the leaders. I found it very hard to believe that educated (Harvard, Rutgers, Brandeis, Columbia, Barnard, etc) people with well paying professional jobs (doctor, therapist, computer programmer, etc) would stay. But they did. I wished for better insight into the minds of those members. Maybe it was there and I just could not believe it.
A book written by someone who had been inside the cult might be better than this one that tries to be an overview by an outsider. ...more
From my bookshelves you can see that this book touches on a lot of topics. The main takeaway is that just about everyone has beliefs that are almost hFrom my bookshelves you can see that this book touches on a lot of topics. The main takeaway is that just about everyone has beliefs that are almost hardwired in. He makes it all sound kind of hopeless to try to convince people to make changes to improve their own lives or the lives of those around them. Nearly everyone Storr features in the book is older. I think a majority were over 70 and just about everyone was over 50. Maybe we are "set in our ways" by then so if you care about an issue and want to change public opinion, aim your pitch at younger people....more
This book is made up of articles that originally appeared in The New Yorker over a period of years. Each one has an added final paragraph telling whatThis book is made up of articles that originally appeared in The New Yorker over a period of years. Each one has an added final paragraph telling what happened to the featured person since the article was written. Some of the pieces were quite interesting (Hardy Rodenstock, Mark Burnett, Judy Clarke) but others were a real slog....more
This is a very engaging book . Dr. O'Sullivan uses the stories of 12 patients to illustrate how how our brains work. Her descriptions of what her patiThis is a very engaging book . Dr. O'Sullivan uses the stories of 12 patients to illustrate how how our brains work. Her descriptions of what her patients faced and how they coped added a lot to my understanding of epilepsy and related conditions. I was surprised that a neurologist can get so much information from observing a seizure. I had assumed diagnosis was from EEGs and MRIs. Yes, these tests are used, but they are just a part of the overall detective work in diagnosing and treating seizures....more
This was an entertaining read mostly about placebos including information on them working even when a person knows he or she is getting a placebo. TheThis was an entertaining read mostly about placebos including information on them working even when a person knows he or she is getting a placebo. The book also included information on the creation of false memories. That information was not new to me but is important for everyone to know, especially if ever serve on a jury. ...more
Dr. Newman makes a strong case for taking a sick or injured child to a pediatric hospital. Children are not just smaller versions of adults. This bookDr. Newman makes a strong case for taking a sick or injured child to a pediatric hospital. Children are not just smaller versions of adults. This book did not pull me in like some other medical memoirs, but it could be a really valuable guide for someone with young children....more
Dr. Dalrymple has an engaging easy to read style with plenty of anecdotes to demonstrate that the current system in England is not working for the patDr. Dalrymple has an engaging easy to read style with plenty of anecdotes to demonstrate that the current system in England is not working for the patients he sees and society as a whole. (Or at least was not working when the book was published in 2001.)
Dalrymple is skilled at the use of a straw man. One of the crimes he uses to rev up the reader is an example of two teenagers killing one of their mothers in New Zealand in 1954. He claims that the current "prevailing opinion" on this crime is that this murder was the "natural, inevitable outcome of a grand passion thwarted by narrow-minded prejudice and intolerance." I am a liberal but am not of the opinion that this is "natural" for 15 year olds. I can't imagine any of my liberal friends defending this crime as natural.
Throughout the book, Dalrymple bemoans the reduction in marriage rates and people drifting without goals. I assumed that in the final chapter he might offer some solutions. Oddly he devotes the last page to complaining about liberals pushing for recognition of homosexual marriage. That got me thinking about which end of the political spectrum values marriage more. Seems to me it is the liberals.
Ms. Glaser does an excellent job of describing how maternity homes in the United States functioned through the heart wrenching story of one birth mothMs. Glaser does an excellent job of describing how maternity homes in the United States functioned through the heart wrenching story of one birth mother and her son.
Adding this to my self-help shelf is a bit tongue-in-cheek but a lot of this book is about people who tried to help themselves by faking death. The idAdding this to my self-help shelf is a bit tongue-in-cheek but a lot of this book is about people who tried to help themselves by faking death. The idea that that the author really considered this option for herself as a way to get out of her student loans is very hard to swallow, but the stories she told of both death fakers and life fakers was entertaining enough that I raced through the book. It is a stretch to tie together the women who believe Michael Jackson is still alive with the men she profiles who faked their deaths and got caught, both are entertaining stories in a tabloid sort of way. I rounded up to 4 from 3.5....more
The title of this book is a good summary of what it is about. I was a little surprised at how obsessive some people are about tracing down relatives. The title of this book is a good summary of what it is about. I was a little surprised at how obsessive some people are about tracing down relatives. Ms. Copeland profiles several searchers in a way that that lets the reader know it used to be really hard for people who were adopted or conceived with sperm donations to find genetic relatives. Now it is often quite easy. Send some spit to Ancestry.com and get matched to any close or distant relative who has used the service.
Like a lot of people sent in a sample to ancestry to see if my family tree had any surprises. My great aunt had made a point of telling me that our family was not Jewish when I was a teen. Why did she need to make a point of that? So I kind of expected a small fraction to be Jewish, but no. The initial nationality breakdown came back just what we had been told--mostly British Isles with about 1/8 German. But about every year I get an update. First the German part was cut in half, then it disappeared. In the last report if was up to 9% which is close to what we expected. Ancestry.com seem to do a better job of linking relatives, but it seems a bit much to be told I have 23,486 matches. Do I really have anything in common with my 4th to 6th cousins?...more
This is the story of a family where 6 of 12 children developed schizophrenia. It is primarily told from the point of view of the two girls. They were This is the story of a family where 6 of 12 children developed schizophrenia. It is primarily told from the point of view of the two girls. They were the youngest children with 10 older brothers. While they did not develop schizophrenia, their lives were much affected by the disease. The story is fascinating and will make most anyone appreciated their own family. The natural friction living with 11 siblings is stress enough. As more and more of them become delusional, often lashing out at others, it must have been terrifying. The girls were lucky to have what amounted to a fairy godmother who pulled them out of the chaos during their high school years.
The book also includes something of a history of the treatments for schizophrenia which highlights flaws in our drug development system....more
I found this book educational. I am probably the type of person (70 year old straight woman) who would get the most out of it. As a 60 year old lesbiaI found this book educational. I am probably the type of person (70 year old straight woman) who would get the most out of it. As a 60 year old lesbian, the author is kind of half way between old women like myself who have always felt comfortable identifying as straight and female and mostly 20-something transgender males she profiles in the book. From the reviews here, I see that a some people think that as an outsider (not transgender) she is not qualified to write on this topic. Maybe this book is not right for the transgender crowd, but is for a bunch of old straight people.
I thought the author did a good job of describing the wide range of ways people experience and deal with being transgender. Although the thought of both breast augmentation and breast removal creeps me out when I think of doing either to my own body, Ms. Stein managed to get me to understand how someone could feel the need to have breasts removed to be in the "right" body. That was an accomplishment. ...more
Shane Bauer alternates between prison history and his own experience as a guard in a private prison. I knew being a prisoner was no bed of roses, but Shane Bauer alternates between prison history and his own experience as a guard in a private prison. I knew being a prisoner was no bed of roses, but had not thought much about what life must be like for the guards. Whatever the situation on publicly run prisons, it is clear that private ones are a lot worse. The wage for first line guards was just $9 an hour which Bauer worked there. Publicly run prisons in Louisiana stated people at $12.50 with more benefits. Not surprisingly, there was huge turnover and constants short staffing.
The whole book is a bummer, but it is information that we should have. This situation needs to change. ...more