Books Read: 10, Average Rating: 3.6 Stars
Burn by Peter Heller: 2/5 Stars. This book felt like it was trying to be edgy hard to dramatize politics without following through on some of it’s most compelling ideas around a US state succession.
He Who Drowned the World by Shelley Parker-Chan: 4/5 Stars. An excelent sequel to She Who Became the Sun however at times it felt like it was trying to hit you on the head with metaphors that the reader can understand the first time.
The Financial Diet by Chelsea Fagan: 2/5 Stars.This beginner book on personal finance might be better for a high school students but feels to simple to be marketed towards people in their early 20s.
Your Money or Your Life by Joe Dominguez: 4/5 Stars. This book was convincing and practical in it’s advice for personal finance, but was repetitive at times.
Worry by Tanner Alexandra: 3/5 Stars. This was an interesting read and there were points that reminded me of my jewish family, but it also felt like it was trying to take that to a too quirky level that sometimes lost me as a reader.
My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh: 2/5 Stars. This was well written but felt like it heavily romanticized depression rather than depicting the difficulties and often tradgedy of it.
How We Named the Stars by Andrés N. Ordorica: 4/5 Stars. This book was such a sweet heartfull queer love story, and then I had to keep trying not to cry for the last 100 pages.
Interesting Facts about Space by Emily Austin: 5/5 Stars. The strangeness of the main character and this book made me feel both understood and upset in a wierdly good way.
Secret City: The Hidden History of Gay Washington by James Kirchick: 5/5 Stars. This book was an incredibly comprehensive look at queer life in the capitol, everyone involved in politics should read it.
The Wealth of Shadows by Graham Moore: 5/5 Stars. Graham Moore has done it again! He continues to be my favorite author writing incredible historical fiction.
General Thoughts August was not particularly eventful, but pleasantly so as I was able to get into a routine now that I am back in NYC until October. I’ve started to prepare for my masters degree program by doing some linear algebra review. I started doing remote research for Professor Sarit Kraus at BIU. I am incredibly excited to work with her; I find her research in AI and multi agent systems fascinating. To begin I have mostly been reading research papers to get a better lay of the land of her work and related work. I have also started writing a few research proposals for project ideas, but I need to make sure I come up with something that seems doable within the one year I am at BIU.
Reset Questions
What went well in August?
What didn’t go so well in August and what can I improve?
Goals for September?