Category: Book of the Day

We Just Want You to Know…

… That this book exists.

Fashion Law: A Guide for Designers, Fashion Executives, and Attorneys. Edited by Guillermo C. Jimenez, Barbara Kolsun.

I’m beyond curious. Do people copyright or trademark buttons or ways of stitching? or fancy pleating? Check it out at JCCC. I can only imagine how crazy some of these things must be.

This Snow is Ridiculous, Until it Saves Me from Deer

Last night, traffic was slowed to a whopping 30 mph on Metcalf near 123rd St. This was, somehow, a good thing, as the unruly mob of deer that pranced passed the front of my car would have most certainly become hood ornaments were I going full speed.

In a transition that is somehow not awkward, the Book of the Day is a new title that just came by my desk called Deer-Resistant Landscaping : Proven advice and strategies for outwitting deer and 20 other pesky mammals. Since the best advice I have is “hire Ted Nugent”, I’m guessing this landscaping business would be a much better technique than anything I have to recommend. Recommended for students looking into landscaping careers, and also to people who hate deer.

In summary: that golf course needs better landscaping, and the snow did something positive for a change. Tiny miracles.

A Book and a Story About Gender Reassignment

Today’s title is “You’ve Changed” : Sex Reassignment and Personal Identity, edited by Laurie Shrage. This collection of essays should be of interest for those involved in queer studies, gender studies, sexuality studies, or perhaps anyone who still has questions about why people proceed with this transition.

But if I may, I’d like to share a quick story with you.  One of the best sports writers to ever live was Christine Daniels. On my birthday in 2009 (which happened to be the day after Thanksgiving),  Christine Daniels took her own life after existing for 2 years. How is that possible? Christine Daniels was born Mike Penner.

Montrealgazette.com; Windycitymediagroup.com

After living as a male for 49 years, Christine finally went through the procedures to become the woman she had felt she always was.

In this incredibly moving eulogy Rick Reilly (of all people, right?) wrote in ESPN The Magazine, Reilly says he received a text message from her after her transition announcement in the LA Times (available here), saying “I’m finally glad […] you got to meet the real me.”

Reilly concludes his post with this:

I don’t know why he did it. Nobody knows. Maybe being Christine caused others too much pain. Maybe being Mike caused him too much. “Maybe trying and failing to be Christine Daniels,” says Kahrl, “killed Mike Penner.”

I’ll miss them both.

If you read Reilly’s article or have any interest in the topic of gender transitioning or want to understand why someone would or what they must have been going through before and during the change, I recommend “You’ve Changed”.

Get It? It’s a Play On Words!

Today’s book: Condom Nation : The U.S. Government’s Sex Education Campaign from World War I to the Internet

Condom Nation. HA!

So this book takes a gander at the last 90 years of sex education in America, and the opposition the government has faced from its own people. Be it religious groups, general anxiety towards the topic of sex, or other obstacles, Alexandra Lord attempts to document the U.S. Government’s long take at a progressive Sex Ed campaign.  While her argument is that Americans have thwarted their own government’s attempts, some critics have said Lord did not go far enough in examining why Americans can shy away from the topic.  While the author’s point of view is made clear from the beginning, it serves as an interesting account of one government’s 90-year efforts to educate its own people about the risks and responsibilities of sexual activity.

H-2-Oh Snap

Water : the epic struggle for wealth, power, and civilization by Steven Solomon is all about how settlements and their relationship to water have helped shape society. And this isn’t a “They built it by a river!” lame account of what should be obvious to anyone who has ever been thirsty. This actually goes into detail about dynasties collapsing based on unrest related water, how the Nile’s flood patterns effected their political relations, and how modern civilization is yet to tap into some of these strategic advantages of their water supplies.

And, since I mainly seem to feature books that scare the crap out of me, it is worth noting that it also concludes with a heavy-handed warning that we’ll run out of water and everyone will die.  That’s an over-simplification of the message, but the author does emphasize that something must be done as water supplies grow more scarce.  That being said, he seems to focus on strategies to make one’s nation superior during times of scarce water as opposed to “How to make more water”, but it doesn’t make it any less interesting.

In Space, No One Can Hear You Ponder

Forget the stomach exploding, finger glowing, and shoulder-mounted lasers: this book is interested in a much more daunting task than just wondering if there are aliens somewhere.  Working on the premise that there must be, Life in the Universe: The Abundance of Extraterrestrial Civilizations by James N. Pierce is much more concerned with trying to calculate just how many there could be.  Working on surprisingly not-boring math, the author calculates the possibilities of how many civilizations may be in our galaxy, then takes it to the universe, and differentiates between aliens and alien civilizations.

It’s quite an interesting read, even if you’re just interested in flipping through it for his conclusion.  And, like all books featured, it is available for check out at the Billington Library.

The Audacity This Takes…

So today’s book is a fictional compilation of interviews from an author’s past lovers and friends, so a fictional biographer can piece them together.  The author in question?  John Coetzee.  The real author of this work of fiction?  John Coetzee. Yeah.  I know.

J.M. Coetzee’s Summertime: fiction is an incredible tale about other people trying to find a human side to a man who produced mopey, often shallow or inhumane novels, only to discover the the man who wrote them wasn’t all that sharp or personable. An absolutely incredible work that takes some brass to even write.   It is equal parts self-deprecating, entirely ambiguous with reality, and insane spectacle.  Though it may sound like an over-indulgent and vain work, Coetzee balances his fictional self in a well-evened manner that takes some real self control to accomplish. Audacious? Yes, in the negative way. Brilliant?  Yes, in the most positive of ways.

DARPA: Not Quite Skynet

Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency: it doesn’t exactly bring to mind much more than futuristic military weapons, killer cyborgs, and super soldiers.  However, this Pentagon-ran project has led to everything from driverless vehicles to the Internet to, yes, advanced future weapons.

Department of Mad Scientists is an inside look at DARPA and all of the advancements they’ve brought to military and civilian populations with both good and/or controversial results. Author Michael Belfiore attempts to show readers the entire spectrum of DARPA’s projects: at least the ones that can be known.  Though it may be a secretive organization, I don’t think we have to worry about DARPA building Skynet.

I think.

The Future Freaks Me Out

In a world now without bees, five people in distant parts of the world become the first sting  victims in years, and engage in a prophetic search for the planet’s future. Pulled from the world of drugs, the world of technology, and in one case, The World of Warcraft, a secret militant group apprehends the sting victims as a prophecy unfolds. This is the story in Douglas Coupland’s Generation A.

I’m not gonna lie, this book is pretty crazy. On the other hand, it’s a funny and thoughtful look at technology, society, and pop culture.  Though technically a sequel in theme to the author’s book, Generation X, it can certainly be enjoyed on its own.