What have you been reading?

The log of local police activity, which I would normally run an excerpt from at this time, has not updated since last week. So, I'm asking what you're reading. Go ahead and comment here with the title, and how you're liking it. I'm always looking for the next good thing to read, even though my to read pile grows and grows.
I've just started Range by David Espstein. I'm only a little way into chapter 2. It was a recommendation I received while on vacation almost a year ago. So far, there's nothing revelatory in it. I'll push through and finish, but I won't be recommending it unless it gets quite a bit better.
I have just finished Proven Guilty by Jim Butcher. It's the eighth Dresden Files novel. I put those aside a few years ago, but have quite enjoyed them. This isn't the best exemplar of the series, but it was pretty good. I can recommend you read the first one.
I've also just finished listening to Brotherhood of the Wolf by David Farland, the second in the Runelords series. I don't like this one well enough to continue. I felt that the first made promises that it didn't keep, and felt much the same way about this one. Ultimately, it's just not interesting enough to keep me coming back. And the only reason I listened to this one was because it was available while other audiobooks were not.

Tragicomedy If Ever I Saw It

I follow a few webcomics. One of those is Full Frontal Nerdity by Aaron Williams and another is Use Sword On Monster. Because of this I go to his landing page rather than the pages for the individual comics to see if there is a new installment of either. The author has been travelling through the Western US, and posted about some of the travails of travel. I happened to read it, I feel it deserves a larger audience. So, go read the whole thing.

Podcast Recommendation: The History of English Podcast

Over about the past month and a half I have been listening to The History of English Podcast produced by Kevin Stroud. As I have listened I have discovered the answers to questions I have had about English for many years without knowing how to find out the answers. The content has been fascinating, and I am grateful to have discovered this collection of information.

I still have three released episodes that I have not listened to (109 - 111), but I feel confident enough to make this recommendation despite not having heard those episodes.

As Stroud explains in the first episode, plans to deliver essentially four volumes of the podcast, and is currently in the third of those volumes. The first is the ancient forebears of the English language from the Indo-European language through to the Germanic language spoken by the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes who settled in England after conquering the Celtic peoples who had been living there. The second is an examination of Old English. Third is the Middle English period. And the fourth is planned to be a discussion of the Modern English period.

Many of my favorite episodes came from the pre-English and Old English episodes. But I continue the enjoy the middle English episodes as well.

One example of something I have learned from by listening to this podcast: I studied French in Junior High, and I have been studying Spanish for about a year and a half. These are both latin languages, and yet their words for cheese are drastically different. Queso in Spanish, and fromage in French. Of the two, queso is closer to the English word cheese despite French influencing English much more than Spanish has. Spanish is an older derivative language of Latin than French is, and took the word for cheese prior to the introduction of formed cheeses. English also had contact with Latin, and borrowed the same word around the same time. Later, formed cheeses were distinguished from unformed cheeses in Latin, and French adopted the word for formed cheeses as its generic word for cheese. This explains why the two latin languages have such different words for cheese, and why Spanish has a more closely related word for cheese than French does despite the greater influence of French on English overall.

I really cannot recommend this more highly. You will be edited by listening to this series. Please do check it out.

Book Recommendation: Thinking, Fast and Slow

I recently completed reading Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman. Considering the book was published more than ten years ago, I'm getting to it fairly late. But because the book is about human nature, and our thinking the ideas presented are enduring. Understanding about some of these ideas mare have been refined since the book was published, but many of the insights are still valuable.

I've seen the book discussed many times in the past, which is why I picked it up when I saw it was available through my local library's ebook program. I am glad I did. There are ideas in there that have changed my perspective. One example is the oft-cited bat and ball problem. I had encountered this question years ago, and I got it right the first time I saw it. (I will admit that my initial impression was  wrong, but immediately after I adjusted my answer before looking at the correct answer.) Because I got it right, I always discounted the statements that most people would answer incorrectly. That is until I read this book and explained it to my wife and my sister. They both immediately responded with the wrong answer without thinking about it any further.

Overall, I gave this book a rating of four out of five stars. The first three parts are very strong; part four is still good; and part five is much weaker. I reduced the overall rating for the lack of quality in the later portion of the book. Despite this, I still think the ideas presented earlier in the work is worth the read.

Book Recommendation: Our Lost Constitution

Last week I read Our Lost Constitution: The Willful Subversion of America's Founding Document by Sen. Mike Lee. I realize that this was published some time ago, but I came across it only recently.

The author has separated his discussion of the constitution into two parts. In the first, each chapter addresses a clause of the constitution, the reasoning that led to its inclusion in the constitution and how that clause has subsequently been undermined. In part two each chapter addresses a method by which the intent of the constitution can be reclaimed from the subversions of the past.

One of my favorite chapters was on the origination clause. I had not realized the extent of the disagreement about representation in the legislative branch, nor how close to terminating the constitutional convention this brought things.

I learned a lot while reading this book, and I highly recommend it to you as well.

It's an Unofficial National Holiday

Happy Dave Brubeck Day, y'all.

Enjoy.

Podcast Recommendation: Revolutions

Over the past few years I have been listening to the Revolutions Podcast hosted by Mike Duncan. He previously produced the History of Rome Podcast, so this one starts from the beginning with good production values, and a host who is confident in his presentation with a strong authorial voice. He has just finished a series on the revolutions in Europe in 1848 that comprises 33 episodes, and is about to start a series on the second French Revolution. He has also covered the English Revolution, the American Revolution, the French Revolution, the Haitian Revolution, the South American Spanish Revolution, and the July Revolution of 1830 (in France).

I have enjoyed this podcast for how extensively each of these are covered. Even the American Revolution series is deeper than what I was presented when covering the topic in school (at whatever level.) But the host also includes quite a bit of humor in each of the episodes. He takes the history, places it in a larger context, slays misconceptions and myths, and does all of this with a wry, dry wit that I quite enjoy.

So, if you already know you like history I probably don't need to tell you anymore. Go subscribe. If you are hesitant, thinking you don't like history, all I can do is encourage you to give it a chance. Perhaps I can entice you by asking you what in the American Revolution could lead to the birth of the phrase "Gentleman Johnny's Party Train." So, go listen to the series on the American Revolution (since we can always benefit from a greater knowledge of our own history) and let me know if you don't agree that this makes the history much more enjoyable than learning a series of battles, dates, and names.

Conveniently, Mike is currently running a fundraiser for this podcast; so, check that out as well. I have no relationship with him other than as a listener to the podcast, and I have not received any compensation for making this recommendation. It's just something that I have thoroughly enjoyed, and I think you might like it too.