It has never been a challenge for me to find time for reading. I would not however qualify as a "voracious" reader. 2017 however was unusually prolific by my standards. Substantial work travel aided in-flight reading. The year had more than a few long weekend getaways most of which were spent in remote places with little to do but read. For a variety of reasons, I had a relatively stress-free last quarter. The inverse co-relation between work stress and concentration had never been clearer. Earlier I considered it pretentious and pompous to talk about what one read. Over time I found it immensely beneficial to go through reading lists of other people/publications. In fact a lot of what I read gets decided by scanning such lists. In this blog am compiling all that I read in 2017 along with my personal rating on a scale of 10. This is listed in chronological order from the beginning of the calendar year. In an uncharacteristic display of discipline I had maintained a list (and rating) perhaps with a sub-conscious decision to write about it. So here goes:
- Revenge of Analog (David Sax) If one prefers vinyl records to iTunes, believes moleskine notebooks up the coolness quotient and apple watches don't really cut it, then this is the one. Counter intuitive and thought provoking. 8/10
- Aurangzeb (Audrey Truschke) In keeping with current thinking on reviewing this much reviled Mughal's image. Does dilute his overwhelming despot image but doesn't do adequate justice to the military strategist or benign secularist (relatively speaking) in him. 6/10
- Our Man in Havana (Graham Greene) A double agent's tale in the Caribbean. Greene has written better stuff. 5/10 (Fiction)
- An Era Of Darkness (Shashi Tharoor) Swayed by rave, chest-thumping nationalist responses to his debate, Tharoor has taken off right from where he left at Oxford. A book ought to have more balance as opposed to reinforcing one-sided debating points. Alas the author seems to forget that even as he churns out a readable account of the Colonial era. 6/10
- Curse of Cash (Kenneth Rogoff) One can be forgiven for thinking this important primer on the importance of phasing out cash was written AFTER the bold (if reckless) demonetisation exercise. If only policy gurus had read this path-breaking work on less-cash and payments efficiency 7/10
- The Sellout (Paul Beatty) Do not get carried away by the Man's Booker Prize nomination like Yours Truly did. Looks at racism through the lens of a Los Angeles courtroom saga. The author is a cross between a poor man's Martin Luther King and Wodehouse. 4/10 (Fiction)
- Barbarians At The Gate (Bryan Burrough / John Helyar) This classic deserves every bit of its cult status . Captures the aborted leveraged buyout of RJR Nabisco. If you thought the investment banking world was full of big egos, flamboyant manipulators and back-stabbers, this one will prove you right. 8/10
- Capone (John Kobler) A colourless portrait of one of America's most colourful gang lords. Chronicles events with little or no nuance and spice. Underwhelming. 4/10
- The New Book Of Snobs: (D J Taylor) Humorous take on the interesting topic of snobbery- something most exhibit but deny. A confused narrative kills it. Reviews better than actual read. 5/10
- Chaos Monkeys (Antonio Garcia Martinez) This brilliant work is to Silicon Valley what "Liars Poker" was to Wall Street. The extremely well-read author combines literary/historical references with cynical wit to debunk many myths around glorified social media giants. 8/10 (actually between 8-9)
- String Theory (David Foster Wallace) A compilation of tennis essays. The one on Federer is one of the best pieces of sports writing I have encountered. 6/10
-The Upstarts (Brad Stone): A finely chronicled tale on the rise and rise of Uber and Air BnB. Describes incredible similarities in the challenges and opportunities faced by both these disruptive start-ups. The author combines a lucid writing style with deep understanding of Silicon Valley (his "The Everything Store" on Amazon is a classic too). The result is a highly inspiring read. 7/10
Advice and Dissent (Y V Reddy) The former RBI Governor narrates his journey from a civil servant to economic administrator to regulator. Does not hide behind much technicality and provides a perspective that even a lay reader can easily relate to. 7/10
Levels of the game (John McPhee) This 1969 classic is considered one of the greatest tennis books of all-time. Through the lens of a US Open Semi Final match between Arthur Ashe and Clark Gaebener, the writer paints a telling portrait of class divide and prejudice in American society of that era. 8/10
Reckoning (David Halberstam) The journey of Ford motor company and Nissan are used to describe industrial development in post war America and Japan. In the process one also learns about some of the more influential Americans of the era (Henry Ford, Robert McNamara etc). Its a lengthy read so recommended only if an auto enthusiast . 7/10
The Reluctant Fundamentalist (Mohsin Hamid) Powerful, racy tale of a Pakistani who succeeds in America, falls in love with all things American only to eventually abandon it all. 6/10 (Fiction)
The Golden House (Salman Rushdie) A poor man's attempt to re-write "The Great Gatsby". Has Rushdie's trademark wordplay and sharp wit. Alas a bit infrequent. The book is akin to the kind of innings great batsmen play just before retirement. Glimpses of genius but the best clearly behind them. 6/10 (Fiction)
Last Man Standing (Duff McDonald) A biography of Jamie Dimon, iconic J P Morgan/Citigroup banker. Unusually one-sided and flattering. Some critique would have brought in much needed balance. Not in the same league as other works by the author. ("The Firm" on McKinsey makes it to my list of top business books of all-time). 6/10
Animal Farm (George Orwell) : Read it. 9/10 (Fiction.... or maybe not)
The Coalition Years (Pranab Mukherjee) : The last of the trilogy by the political Dhritarashtra. Rich on information but hugely underwhelming on perspective. Reads like a mere compendium of events with little or no insight. 4/10
The Metamorphosis (Franz Kafka) This one went completely over my head. 0/10 (or maybe "unrated" is fairer)
Class (Paul Fussell) This witty description of the American status system is humorous and incisive at the same time. The author funnily takes you through the subtle and not-so-subtle differences to tell men and women with class from the "proles". Has an interesting take on a range of preferences : from the obvious ones like automobiles and home interiors to some interesting ones like musical instruments and pets. 7/10
As I scan my list and draw up my reading resolutions for 2018, am determined to read a lot more fiction in the year ahead. Also, given my low history-literacy, perhaps I need to have a lot more of this in the 2018 to-read list. Hopefully 2018 shall be better in more ways than one.
- Revenge of Analog (David Sax) If one prefers vinyl records to iTunes, believes moleskine notebooks up the coolness quotient and apple watches don't really cut it, then this is the one. Counter intuitive and thought provoking. 8/10
- Aurangzeb (Audrey Truschke) In keeping with current thinking on reviewing this much reviled Mughal's image. Does dilute his overwhelming despot image but doesn't do adequate justice to the military strategist or benign secularist (relatively speaking) in him. 6/10
- Our Man in Havana (Graham Greene) A double agent's tale in the Caribbean. Greene has written better stuff. 5/10 (Fiction)
- An Era Of Darkness (Shashi Tharoor) Swayed by rave, chest-thumping nationalist responses to his debate, Tharoor has taken off right from where he left at Oxford. A book ought to have more balance as opposed to reinforcing one-sided debating points. Alas the author seems to forget that even as he churns out a readable account of the Colonial era. 6/10
- Curse of Cash (Kenneth Rogoff) One can be forgiven for thinking this important primer on the importance of phasing out cash was written AFTER the bold (if reckless) demonetisation exercise. If only policy gurus had read this path-breaking work on less-cash and payments efficiency 7/10
- The Sellout (Paul Beatty) Do not get carried away by the Man's Booker Prize nomination like Yours Truly did. Looks at racism through the lens of a Los Angeles courtroom saga. The author is a cross between a poor man's Martin Luther King and Wodehouse. 4/10 (Fiction)
- Barbarians At The Gate (Bryan Burrough / John Helyar) This classic deserves every bit of its cult status . Captures the aborted leveraged buyout of RJR Nabisco. If you thought the investment banking world was full of big egos, flamboyant manipulators and back-stabbers, this one will prove you right. 8/10
- Capone (John Kobler) A colourless portrait of one of America's most colourful gang lords. Chronicles events with little or no nuance and spice. Underwhelming. 4/10
- The New Book Of Snobs: (D J Taylor) Humorous take on the interesting topic of snobbery- something most exhibit but deny. A confused narrative kills it. Reviews better than actual read. 5/10
- Chaos Monkeys (Antonio Garcia Martinez) This brilliant work is to Silicon Valley what "Liars Poker" was to Wall Street. The extremely well-read author combines literary/historical references with cynical wit to debunk many myths around glorified social media giants. 8/10 (actually between 8-9)
- String Theory (David Foster Wallace) A compilation of tennis essays. The one on Federer is one of the best pieces of sports writing I have encountered. 6/10
-The Upstarts (Brad Stone): A finely chronicled tale on the rise and rise of Uber and Air BnB. Describes incredible similarities in the challenges and opportunities faced by both these disruptive start-ups. The author combines a lucid writing style with deep understanding of Silicon Valley (his "The Everything Store" on Amazon is a classic too). The result is a highly inspiring read. 7/10
Advice and Dissent (Y V Reddy) The former RBI Governor narrates his journey from a civil servant to economic administrator to regulator. Does not hide behind much technicality and provides a perspective that even a lay reader can easily relate to. 7/10
Levels of the game (John McPhee) This 1969 classic is considered one of the greatest tennis books of all-time. Through the lens of a US Open Semi Final match between Arthur Ashe and Clark Gaebener, the writer paints a telling portrait of class divide and prejudice in American society of that era. 8/10
Reckoning (David Halberstam) The journey of Ford motor company and Nissan are used to describe industrial development in post war America and Japan. In the process one also learns about some of the more influential Americans of the era (Henry Ford, Robert McNamara etc). Its a lengthy read so recommended only if an auto enthusiast . 7/10
The Reluctant Fundamentalist (Mohsin Hamid) Powerful, racy tale of a Pakistani who succeeds in America, falls in love with all things American only to eventually abandon it all. 6/10 (Fiction)
The Golden House (Salman Rushdie) A poor man's attempt to re-write "The Great Gatsby". Has Rushdie's trademark wordplay and sharp wit. Alas a bit infrequent. The book is akin to the kind of innings great batsmen play just before retirement. Glimpses of genius but the best clearly behind them. 6/10 (Fiction)
Last Man Standing (Duff McDonald) A biography of Jamie Dimon, iconic J P Morgan/Citigroup banker. Unusually one-sided and flattering. Some critique would have brought in much needed balance. Not in the same league as other works by the author. ("The Firm" on McKinsey makes it to my list of top business books of all-time). 6/10
Animal Farm (George Orwell) : Read it. 9/10 (Fiction.... or maybe not)
The Coalition Years (Pranab Mukherjee) : The last of the trilogy by the political Dhritarashtra. Rich on information but hugely underwhelming on perspective. Reads like a mere compendium of events with little or no insight. 4/10
The Metamorphosis (Franz Kafka) This one went completely over my head. 0/10 (or maybe "unrated" is fairer)
Class (Paul Fussell) This witty description of the American status system is humorous and incisive at the same time. The author funnily takes you through the subtle and not-so-subtle differences to tell men and women with class from the "proles". Has an interesting take on a range of preferences : from the obvious ones like automobiles and home interiors to some interesting ones like musical instruments and pets. 7/10
As I scan my list and draw up my reading resolutions for 2018, am determined to read a lot more fiction in the year ahead. Also, given my low history-literacy, perhaps I need to have a lot more of this in the 2018 to-read list. Hopefully 2018 shall be better in more ways than one.
