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> I read parts of it and found it slow and boring but then haven't stopped thinking about it since. I can't tell you how much I love this sentence -- captures

> I read parts of it and found it slow and boring but then haven't stopped thinking about it since. I can't tell you how much I love this sentence -- captures a similar experience of mine so succinctly. I keep running into books that I tried to read at a "normal" pace and hated, thought were stupid, that nobody really likes it for real, etc. But then, for different reasons, I started reading books incredibly slowly, and it's like I've entered a secret world. Some examples, for the curious: The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, Kuhn The Varieties of Religious Experience, James The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life, Goffman Human Action, Mises

unhammer 4y ago
* Tools for Conviviality, by Ivan Illich * The Peregrine, by J.A. Baker
- shanusmagnus 4y ago
  Wow. From an Amazon review of The Peregrine[1]: "The language he uses to construct his sentences is like none other I have ever read. It's a vivid mix of nature writing and the best poetry. The text is so dense, the sentences are so packed with words bringing life to action--there really is no reading experience I can compare this to. I could only stand to read a few pages at a time; "relish" not "read" would be the better word there." My copy is on its way. Thanks for the rec, I never would have found this. [1] https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R1FWYHXOVPAIQ https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R1FWYHXOVPAIQ
AlbertCory 4y ago
Two out of four (the first two) I started and stopped. Maybe I should persevere. Sometimes (e.g. Kuhn) you feel like you've already read the thesis after 50 pages or so, and the rest is just repetition of it.
- shanusmagnus 4y ago
  Believe me, I get it :) Caveat 1: I'm not entirely sure you're wrong wrt Kuhn. But there's no way I would have gotten even 50 pages in w/out going incredibly slow and thinking deeply about it -- my general algorithm now with books such as these is to read enough that I have a 'mind-full' of stuff, and then think about how it connects to other things I care about. That (wrt Kuhn) has made the difference between thinking of paradigms as "big-picture stuff that changes every so often in a manner more complicated than we normally consider", to seeing the tendrils everywhere, all the time, in subtle and nuanced ways propagating through all culture. It took the concept of 'paradigm' from a soundbite I could recite when called upon to a plant that has sent tendrils into the foundations of my thought. Maybe I'm a simpleton and others don't need it, but I don't care anymore. A book is a very personal encounter. The same applies to James, but something else besides: he's just so _beautiful_ of a writer! But it's a languorous kind of beauty that was utterly lost on me until I started reading him slowly. Reading a few pages at a time I've been struck, repeatedly, by his artistry. I would read him for pleasure, even without any insights. Can't tell you what a change that has been. The tragedy in all this is that it puts the lie to the self-delusion that I could ever read all that is worthy to be read. C'est la vie. I'd rather actually get something out of the books than have the bedpost notches. I know there are hyper-prolific readers (e.g., Tyler Cowen) -- I wonder if they can get both kinds of value? Either way, I can't, so it doesn't much matter.
  - AlbertCory 4y ago
    Great answer, thanks. I often get that feeling of "enjoying the beauty of the writing" with Patrick O'Brian, who was pretty prolific. I've read all 20 Aubrey-Maturin books twice now. Even though I don't understand sailing and ship design at all, hardly, I don't mind it -- I get the gist. (I was inspired by POB; I'm not comparing myself) Writing my two books, I took the same direction: maybe some people won't get all the technical details, but I hope they won't care, like I don't care that I don't know what "wearing" is.
    - pjmorris 4y ago
      I've only read the first four, but fell in love with the writing. I've bought most of the rest of the series and 'Desolation Island' sits high on the to read next pile.
deleted 4y ago
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rhn_mk1 4y ago
My 2 cents: The Origins of Totalitarianism by Hannah Arendt

unhammer 4y ago

* Tools for Conviviality, by Ivan Illich * The Peregrine, by J.A. Baker

shanusmagnus 4y ago
Wow. From an Amazon review of The Peregrine[1]: "The language he uses to construct his sentences is like none other I have ever read. It's a vivid mix of nature writing and the best poetry. The text is so dense, the sentences are so packed with words bringing life to action--there really is no reading experience I can compare this to. I could only stand to read a few pages at a time; "relish" not "read" would be the better word there." My copy is on its way. Thanks for the rec, I never would have found this. [1] https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R1FWYHXOVPAIQ https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R1FWYHXOVPAIQ

AlbertCory 4y ago

Two out of four (the first two) I started and stopped. Maybe I should persevere. Sometimes (e.g. Kuhn) you feel like you've already read the thesis after 50 pages or so, and the rest is just repetition of it.

shanusmagnus 4y ago
Believe me, I get it :) Caveat 1: I'm not entirely sure you're wrong wrt Kuhn. But there's no way I would have gotten even 50 pages in w/out going incredibly slow and thinking deeply about it -- my general algorithm now with books such as these is to read enough that I have a 'mind-full' of stuff, and then think about how it connects to other things I care about. That (wrt Kuhn) has made the difference between thinking of paradigms as "big-picture stuff that changes every so often in a manner more complicated than we normally consider", to seeing the tendrils everywhere, all the time, in subtle and nuanced ways propagating through all culture. It took the concept of 'paradigm' from a soundbite I could recite when called upon to a plant that has sent tendrils into the foundations of my thought. Maybe I'm a simpleton and others don't need it, but I don't care anymore. A book is a very personal encounter. The same applies to James, but something else besides: he's just so _beautiful_ of a writer! But it's a languorous kind of beauty that was utterly lost on me until I started reading him slowly. Reading a few pages at a time I've been struck, repeatedly, by his artistry. I would read him for pleasure, even without any insights. Can't tell you what a change that has been. The tragedy in all this is that it puts the lie to the self-delusion that I could ever read all that is worthy to be read. C'est la vie. I'd rather actually get something out of the books than have the bedpost notches. I know there are hyper-prolific readers (e.g., Tyler Cowen) -- I wonder if they can get both kinds of value? Either way, I can't, so it doesn't much matter.
- AlbertCory 4y ago
  Great answer, thanks. I often get that feeling of "enjoying the beauty of the writing" with Patrick O'Brian, who was pretty prolific. I've read all 20 Aubrey-Maturin books twice now. Even though I don't understand sailing and ship design at all, hardly, I don't mind it -- I get the gist. (I was inspired by POB; I'm not comparing myself) Writing my two books, I took the same direction: maybe some people won't get all the technical details, but I hope they won't care, like I don't care that I don't know what "wearing" is.
  - pjmorris 4y ago
    I've only read the first four, but fell in love with the writing. I've bought most of the rest of the series and 'Desolation Island' sits high on the to read next pile.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

rhn_mk1 4y ago

My 2 cents: The Origins of Totalitarianism by Hannah Arendt