Slavery by Another Name by Douglas Blackmon

Every year I check out the Pulitzer Prize winners in non-fiction as well as those from the National Book Award.  No matter what the subject, these books usually have two things in common that I love.  First, they are incredibly well researched.  The endnotes themselves tell a story about an author sitting in basements, sorting [...]

Incompleteness: The Proof and Paradox of Kurt Godel

One book leads to another.  That’s the way it goes.  Since I was a child, I allowed myself no gaps between the end of one book and the beginning of another.  In many cases, there would be direct causal connections to the choices.  Sometimes there would be jumps and starts, but overall, themes would build [...]

Anathem by Neal Stephenson

Anathem, by Neal Stephenson, is an incredible book.  It examines an alternate world in which two societies have developed coexisting, but apart from, one another.  In one society – the Saecular – politics and culture is very similar to our own.  In the other – the Avout – live in seclusion and division from the [...]