Episode · The Book Review · 2024-07-18
Books mentioned on Michael Pollan on His Acid Test
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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How to Change Your Mind
How to Change Your Mind by Michael Pollan is a compelling exploration of the history and science of psychedelics, investigating substances like LSD and psilocybin.
Recommended“well it's an incredibly persuasive book”
Where to get it
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The efficiency paradox
Discussed“all right the book again is called the efficiency Paradox what Big Data can't do by Edward tenner”
Where to get it
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The Botany of Desire
The Botany of Desire by Michael Pollan is an engaging exploration of the co-evolutionary relationship between humans and plants, examining how species like apples, tulips, marijuana, and potatoes have domesticated human desires.
Discussed“and that was an intellectual conceit for me it animated you know a whole book for me the botney desire”
Where to get it
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Our own devices
Discussed“the second book our own devices was really not entirely on adverse unintended consequences because I was also looking at some positive ones”
Where to get it
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Why things bite back
Discussed“when I was writing why things bite back that was really a trough in the reputation of artificial intelligence”
Where to get it
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Ulysses
Ulysses by James Joyce is a monumental modernist novel that chronicles a single day in the life of Leopold Bloom in Dublin, mirroring the structure of Homer's Odyssey.
Discussed“I'm still reading ulyses now and forever”
Where to get it
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The juniper tree
The juniper tree by Barbara Comyns is a haunting twentieth-century novel that reimagines fairy-tale motifs in a stark, domestic setting characterized by tragedy, resilience, and the uncanny.
Recommended“the first novel that I want to talk about is a book called The juniper tree by Barbara comans and it was reissued earlier this year by New York Review books”
Where to get it
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High Dive
High Dive by Jonathan Lee is a gripping historical novel that fictionalizes the real-life 1984 Brighton hotel bombing carried out by the IRA, focusing on the interwoven lives of a fictional bomber, a hotel manager, and a young girl.
Recommended“and then I picked up a book called High Dive by the writer Jonathan Lee”
Where to get it
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Less
Less by Andrew Sean Greer is a comedic and deeply moving Pulitzer Prize-winning novel that follows a middle-aged writer named Arthur Less as he embarks on a chaotic, globe-trotting journey to avoid an ex-boyfriend's wedding.
Recommended“I'm going to talk a little bit more about Andrew Shan Greer who listeners of this podcast will remember was a guest last year when the book came out in hard cover”
Where to get it
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The Death of Mrs Westaway
Discussed“so it looks like the death of Mrs Westway is going to be another closed door mystery and that's one of the reasons I picked it up”
Where to get it
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In a Dark, Dark Wood
In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware is a suspenseful thriller about a reclusive writer who gets drawn into a chaotic weekend in a remote glass house that ultimately ends in murder.
Critiqued“and I should say up front that I have a complicated relationship with Ruth wear books because unlike most people I did not love in a dark dark wood I it either”
Where to get it
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The Woman in Cabin 10
The Woman in Cabin 10 is a gripping psychological thriller by Ruth Ware that follows a journalist who witnesses a suspected murder while on a luxury cruise, only to find that all passengers and crew are seemingly accounted for.
Discussed“uh she's British and I then liked very much one called the woman in Cabin 10 and the reason I liked that is that it was a closed door mystery”
Where to get it
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And Then There Were None
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie is a masterclass in suspense and widely regarded as one of the greatest murder mystery novels ever written, following ten strangers lured to a remote island who are systematically killed off.
Recommended“I mean the greatest one of course is Agatha Christie and then there were none just read that last year for the first time so good right”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (6) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
“this is Michael Lewis author of The Blindside and Moneyball and liars poker and a number of best sellers and he sold more than 10 million copies of his books”
“this is Michael Lewis author of The Blindside and Moneyball and liars poker and a number of best sellers and he sold more than 10 million copies of his books”
“this is Michael Lewis author of The Blindside and Moneyball and liars poker and a number of best sellers and he sold more than 10 million copies of his books”
“notably who owns the future”
“and you are not a gadget”
“and I think most recently dawn of the new everything um which came out last year”