In 2024, my reading volume was low. But I want to keep the tradition of listing the books I read and enjoyed.
The ones I relished are indicated with a 🫰emoji.
So here goes.
🫰The Body Keeps Score – Bessel van der Kolk
I came across this book while listening to an interview of the Bessel van der Kolk. It has great insights into how trauma can change brain structure to how it affects the body and its responses. If you have dealt with someone with trauma or PTSD, this is a book I would highly recommend reading.
Women in a River Landscape: A Novel in Dialogues and Soliloquies – Heinrich Boll
The book was given to me by a friend on a whim. The writing is a lot of dialogue, almost reads like a play. The story really is about power, moral decay and ethical compromises for wealth, power and social position.
🫰Knowledge as Commons: Towards Inclusive Science and Technology – Prabir Purkayastha
This is a collection of writings by Prabir Purkayastha. He is an engineer by training. But, he became a journalist who writes a lot about technology in India.
His main hypothesis, which I agree with, is that technology or science has become controlled by a large capitalist system. In this system, common people have become more users of technology than creators of it. The book has some great insights into licensing and funding of science and technology and how this affects India (or for that matter the global south)
Mind Master: Winning Lessons from a Champion’s Life – Viswanathan Anand
I really loved reading this book. I picked it up while tracking the Candidates tournament earlier in 2024. Anand is very open about his struggles and his journey as a Grandmaster and a five time World Champion.
Thankfully, the book is very accessible and you do not need knowledge of chess theory.
This is Amiko, Do You Copy? – Natsuko Immamura
This was slightly disturbing to read. The story really is about isolation and obsession with perception. Mainly it has great insights into how people are often feeling invisible in society.
🫰🫰Barefoot Gen, Volume One: A Cartoon Story of Hiroshima – Keiji Nakazawa
This was a manga comic book. It tracks the story of Gen and his family. They struggle through extreme wartime conditions in Hiroshima. The book is a strong anti-war message, which war and nuclear disaster seen through the eyes of a child.
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