📚 The Reading Journal #017

👋 Hey Everyone

The 26th President of the United States of America, Theodore Roosevelt was a well-read man. So much so that according to Theodore Roosevelt's Libraries, Roosevelt on an average read one book a day even when he was the President! 'He usually read several books at a time, rotating between them depending on his activities and/or his mood. Roosevelt read widely in genres ranging from classic and contemporary fiction & poetry to ancient philosophy, military histories and natural history studies,' reads a statement on their official website. Source

📷 Bookshelf Humble Brag

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📚 Staff Pick of the Week

Zero to One by Peter Thiel

Entrepreneur and venture capitalist Peter Thiel offers unique guidance for digital entrepreneurs in his book Zero to One.

Technology has stagnated, according to Thiel, a co-founder of PayPal and the first outside investor in Facebook. Thiel contends that the most valuable and game-changing startups produce something new, while the majority of new businesses make incremental improvements to already established products. The world is changed from zero to one by them.

The only way for humanity to advance is through creating new things, which is also the best way to make money.

Zero to One is ranked number 5 on our top 100 most recommended book list. It has been recommended by the likes of Elon Musk, Nassim Taleb, Steph Smith and 27 others.

🎥 Reading Talk's

📈 Rising Quickly - Week of October 17, 2022

When McKinsey Comes to Town: The Hidden Influence of the World's Most Powerful Consulting Firm by Walt Bogdanich

McKinsey & Company is the most prestigious consulting company in the world, earning billions of dollars in fees from major corporations and governments who turn to it to maximize their profits and enhance efficiency. McKinsey's vaunted statement of values asserts that its role is to make the world a better place, and its reputation for excellence and discretion attracts top talent from universities around the world. But what does it actually do?

In When McKinsey Comes to Town, two prizewinning investigative journalists have written a portrait of the company sharply at odds with its public image. Often McKinsey's advice boils down to major cost-cutting, including layoffs and maintenance reductions, to drive up short-term profits, thereby boosting a company's stock price and the wealth of its executives who hire it, at the expense of workers and safety measures. McKinsey collects millions of dollars advising government agencies that also regulate McKinsey's corporate clients. And the firm frequently advises competitors in the same industries, but denies that this presents any conflict of interest.

🪄 Most Talked About Fiction - Week of October 17, 2022

Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka

Winner of the 2022 Booker Prize, The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida is a searing satire set amid the mayhem of the Sri Lankan civil war.

Colombo, 1990. Maali Almeida—war photographer, gambler, and closet queen—has woken up dead in what seems like a celestial visa office. His dismembered body is sinking in the serene Beira Lake and he has no idea who killed him. In a country where scores are settled by death squads, suicide bombers, and hired goons, the list of suspects is depressingly long, as the ghouls and ghosts with grudges who cluster round can attest. But even in the afterlife, time is running out for Maali. He has seven moons to contact the man and woman he loves most and lead them to the photos that will rock Sri Lanka.

📚 Most Talked About Non-Fiction - Week of October 17, 2022

Curious Minds: The Power of Connection by Perry Zurn & Dani S. Bassett

Curious about something? Google it. Look at it. Ask a question. But is curiosity simply information seeking? According to this exhilarating, genre-bending book, what’s left out of the conventional understanding of curiosity are the wandering tracks, the weaving concepts, the knitting of ideas, and the thatching of knowledge systems—the networks, the relations between ideas and between people. Curiosity, say Perry Zurn and Dani Bassett, is a practice of connection: it connects ideas into networks of knowledge, and it connects knowers themselves, both to the knowledge they seek and to each other.

🆕 New and Noteworthy

Madly, Deeply: The Diaries of Alan Rickman

From his breakout role in Die Hard to his outstanding, multifaceted performances in the Harry Potter films, Galaxy Quest, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, and more, Alan Rickman cemented his legacy as a world-class actor. His air of dignity, his sonorous voice, and the knowing wit he brought to each role continue to captivate audiences today.

But Rickman’s ability to breathe life into projects wasn't confined to just his performances. As you'll find, Rickman's diaries detail the extraordinary and the ordinary, flitting between worldly and witty and gossipy, while remaining utterly candid throughout. He takes us inside his home, on trips with friends across the globe, and on the sets of films and plays ranging from Sense and Sensibility, to Noël Coward's Private Lives, to the final film he directed, A Little Chaos.

Running from 1993 to his death in 2016, the diaries provide singular insight into Rickman's public and private life. Reading them is like listening to Rickman chatting to a close companion. Meet Rickman the consummate professional actor, but also the friend, the traveler, the fan, the director, the enthusiast; in short, the man beyond the icon.

👀 In Case You Missed It

✍️ Quote of the Week

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