What I'm reading ...

I have started The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. It’s time for fiction and this is a long book that hopefully I can get my teeth into. I am told that it’s quite immersive, so we’ll see. Here’s the blurb:

Aged thirteen, Theo Decker, son of a devoted mother and a reckless, largely absent father, survives an accident that otherwise tears his life apart. Alone and rudderless in New York, he is taken in by the family of a wealthy friend. He is tormented by an unbearable longing for his mother, and down the years clings to the thing that most reminds him of her: a small, strangely captivating painting that ultimately draws him into the criminal underworld. As he grows up, Theo learns to glide between the drawing rooms of the rich and the dusty antiques store where he works. He is alienated and in love - and his talisman, the painting, places him at the centre of a narrowing, ever more dangerous circle.

Breaking Through: My Life In Science - by Katalin Karikó

I had a feeling that this book would suit me, as I like science and, because people’s lives interest me, I like an autobiography. I was right. This book intersperses the account of the author’s life with lots of detail about the science.

Overall, the book is a great lesson: An immigrant, who struggled to get through education and into the US and faced deportation at least once, goes on to become a Nobel Prize winner. As an aside, her daughter won gold in the Olympics twice. Quite a contribution!

This was an uplifting book that leaves me wondering how many people have great ideas and talent, but don’t have the tenacity of this author and, hence, don’t quite make it.

What I'm reading ...

I have started Breaking Through: My Life In Science by Katalin Karikó. I heard some of this book being read on the radio and was then recommended it. As I’m interested in science and enjoy an autobiography, it seemed logical to give it a go. Here’s the blurb:

Katalin Karikó began life as a butcher’s daughter in post-war Communist Hungary: a hand-to-mouth existence in a single-room house of clay and straw with no running water. Breaking Through is her extraordinary memoir of how she achieved her dream of becoming a scientist, first in Hungary and then in the USA, and pursued her belief – despite so many telling her not to – that an elusive molecule could transform our ability to prevent disease.

For three decades she worked in obscurity, battling cockroaches in a windowless lab, enduring demotion, the derision of her colleagues, even threats of deportation. But in 2020, Karikó’s vision was spectacularly vindicated when her work made possible the vaccines that brought an end to the pandemic, paving the way for similar vaccines against HIV, malaria and other life-threatening diseases.

As frank, wise and fearless as Karikó herself, Breaking Through is a remarkable story of tenacity, friendship and loyalty, and one woman’s unshakeable commitment to her values.

Fifteen Dogs - by Alexis André

A really interesting story, even if I had to suspend belief to accept it. Curiously, I am not sure whether I learned more about dog behaviour, hearing the dogs’ thoughts on that, or human behaviour as I hear their observations. It reminded me somewhat of another book where an alien gets to be a human for a while and is very confused about the way be behave.

Overall, it was thought provoking and I’ll take that.

What I'm reading ...

I have started Fifteen Dogs by Alexis André. This book was recommended by a friend. I am always a little wary of fantasy books, but thought that this sounded intriguing. Here’s the blurb:

It begins in a bar, like so many strange stories. The gods Hermes and Apollo argue about what would happen if animals had human intelligence, so they make a bet that leads them to grant consciousness and language to a group of dogs staying overnight at a veterinary clinic.

Suddenly capable of complex thought, the dogs escape and become a pack. They are torn between those who resist the new ways of thinking, preferring the old 'dog' ways, and those who embrace the change. The gods watch from above as the dogs venture into unfamiliar territory, as they become divided among themselves, as each struggles with new thoughts and feelings. Wily Benjy moves from home to home, Prince becomes a poet, and Majnoun forges a relationship with a kind couple that stops even the Fates in their tracks.

Engaging and strange, full of unexpected insights into human and canine minds, this contemporary take on the apologue is the most extraordinary book you'll read this year.

Behave - by Robert Sapolsky

When I set out to read this book, I was daunted by its length. As it turned out, many pages at the end were devoted to notes, bibliography etc. However, it was still about 750 pages of very solid material and, being a slow reader, it took me a while. But it was worth the effort.

The scope of the book is immense, as the author is an expert in human behaviour and neuroscience and constant reviews the connections between these disciplines. His writing style is relaxed and pleasing to read, with the occasional witticism. There are numerous technical terms, but the author does not assume any particular expertise and defines terms before using them. It is probably a book where I should have been taking notes as I went along.

Overall, I learned a lot from the book and believe it will actually help me understand many aspects of the [human] world that are so often mysterious.