Reading Update

Time for a rapid-fire round.

On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society by Dave Grossman

A study of the effects of killing on the human psyche and how armies override the instinctive resistance to killing. (Left to instincts, the author argues, fights end up involving more posturing than actual combat.) First chunk was a good overview of the factors that armies utilize to great effect, whether or not they know it: physical/mechanical/cultural distance from the enemy, moral superiority, a feeling of accountability to the buddy next to you. Last bit of the books gets very wild with the author more concerned about video games eroding civilians' instincts against killing than say, civilians getting desensitized via the actual violence the experience/see/commit. After that, the author's current job is distressingly unsurprising. Book's still worth reading.

The Light Brigade by Kameron Hurley

On an Earth where corporations are nation-states, there's a war against the Martian rebels and Dietz has enlisted. But Dietz doesn't seem to be seeing missions the same way. Super fun timey-wimey stuff with military sci-fi trappings, a fitting overlap with the previous read. I enjoyed the temporary ambiguity of Dietz's gender. Unfortunately, I want more details on the timey-wimey stuff and Mars near the end, and instead I got a speech and unexplained power-ups.

Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown

Whole-ass one thing instead of half-assing many things. I agree, but could have spent more time on how than why. Meh.

Bengali Harlem and the Lost Histories of South Asian America by Vivek Bald

A fascinating study of the many Muslim peddlers and seamen from British India (mostly Bengal) who came through the United States in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, a small subset of whom stayed permanently. Silk peddlers peaked in 1880s-1910s, capitalizing on a new fever for the ~oriental aesthetic~. The seamen showed up in the early 1900s, ditching working conditions on British ships for (slightly) better ones on American ships or for new lives altogether. Many of the ones who stayed married and integrated into black neighborhoods - hence the title - and were thus easy to miss outside of records like ship manifests and census records.

Lion City by Ng Yi-Sheng

Fun speculative fiction short-story collection set in Singapore, or about it. My favorites were The Little Emperor, Garden (time-travel CYOA), and "The Boy, The Swordfish and The Bleeding Island". I had entirely forgotten about that swordfish story explanation for the red soil.

I Like to Watch: Arguing My Way Through the TV Revolution by Emily Nussbaum

Collection of the author's TV criticism and profiles. Weirdly enjoyed reading about shows I've never seen - there's only so many hours I want to spend on TV. Favorites were probably the love letter to Jane The Virgin, and the profile of Ryan Murphy.

State of Emergency by Jeremy Tiang

Six sections, with six perspectives, cover decades of leftist movements and detentions without trail in Singapore and Malaysia, starting with the 1940s. Felt more informed while reading it, as opposed to being carried away with the story. Likely revealing of my biases that I was most invested in the last three POVs.