Lewis Hyde, The Gift: Imagination and the Erotic Life of Property (1983) – Updated in 2007 as The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World Lewis Hyde’s The Gift has gone through a couple of subtitle changes but remains a foundational text in understanding the etymology of gifts and generosity. Each chapter addressesContinue reading “The Gift”
Tag Archives: history
From Gilead, Iowa
Marilynne Robinson, Gilead (2004) One long episodic letter from father to son, Gilead by Marilynne Robinson received much critical acclaim. It is full of symbolism and I would not have read it, if it were not for one of my classes at school. It has it moments that I enjoyed and the premise of theContinue reading “From Gilead, Iowa”
Getting Better?
Charles Kenny, Getting Better: Why Global Development is Succeeding – And How We Can Improve the World Even More, Basic Books (2012) Kenny’s intention with this book is to largely address an increasingly and ever present cynicism around international development. The issues surround Western dominated largely supply led initiatives that are seen to fail providingContinue reading “Getting Better?”
Hidden Figures
Margot Lee Shetterly, Hidden Figures (2016) The recognition of the film adaptation of Hidden Figures (2016) says a lot about its inspirational and compelling basis. In an interview after the publishing of the book, the first question concerns the delicate blend of historical work couched as a novel. This is a story heavy in contextualContinue reading “Hidden Figures”
Liberty’s Prisoners
Jen Manion, Liberty’s Prisoners: Carceral Culture in Early America (2015) This week’s post is in response to a book I was assigned for a class assessment. It is therefore more formal in its manner. It is already a challenge to get through a book a week in addition to class assignments so that is whyContinue reading “Liberty’s Prisoners”
An American Abroad in a Post-American World
Suzy Hansen, Notes on a Foreign Country. An American Abroad in a Post-American World (2017) Hansen’s work is a mix of self-realization, historical education and anger at a personally misplaced sense of American exceptionalism. Told from her experiences of moving to Istanbul from New York under the cloud of scaremongering headlines about the “Muslim World”.Continue reading “An American Abroad in a Post-American World”
The Weekly Book Report 