The Bookshelf
ChrisHubbs.com

The 25 books I’ve read so far in 2023 year in books

Cover of The Technology Trap.

The Technology Trap

by Carl Benedikt Frey · published 2020 · read 2023-03-22
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
An interesting overview of the impact of revolutionary technology on society at large. In general, the recurring theme, says the author, is that people whose jobs are eliminated are worse off in the short run, but in the longer run everyone is better off.

Cover of A Closed and Common Orbit.

A Closed and Common Orbit

by Becky Chambers · published 2017 · last read 2023-03-18
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
Really should be 4.5 stars. Even more enjoyable than the first book in the series.

Cover of A Hidden Wholeness.

A Hidden Wholeness

by Parker J. Palmer · published 2004 · read 2023-03-11
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Palmer sharing his wisdom and practical principles for operating a 'circle of trust' - a principle where a small group of people care for each other primarily through quiet, acceptance, non-judgment, and loving, non-leading questions. An idea that speaks profoundly to me. Palmer makes me want to find and attend a Quaker meeting.

Cover of Not All Who Wander (Spiritually) Are Lost.

Not All Who Wander (Spiritually) Are Lost

by Traci Rhoades · published 2020 · read 2023-03-10
★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆
Flimsy, not particularly well written, and... naive, maybe? Basically 150 pages of "yes, people go to different kinds of churches and sometimes move between them". Not sure that qualifies as "wandering".

Cover of Art and Faith.

Art and Faith

by Makoto Fujimura · published 2021 · read 2023-03-09
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
A world-class artist and thoughtful believer articulating the deep connection between artistry and faith. Beautiful.

Cover of The Bayern Agenda.

The Bayern Agenda

by Dan Moren · published 2019 · read 2023-03-05
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
Highly entertaining mixture of war adventure and sci-fi. Now I'm gonna have to read the rest of them.

Cover of Joel on Software.

Joel on Software

by Avram Joel Spolsky · published 2004 · read 2023-03-03
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
I don't think I was reading Joel Spolsky's blog at the time these pieces were originally published, but it was close. The programming and computer technology he's talking about here is of course 20 years old and thus very dated, but his commentary on management and people dynamics is still spot-on and his writing is still entertaining.

Cover of Mindsight.

Mindsight

by Daniel J. Siegel · published 2010 · read 2023-03-01
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
Siegel is basically advocating a practice of mindfulness and emotional integration. The first half of the book is very solid, though it would've benefitted from getting rid of the foofy name. "Mindsight" makes it sound like a ridiculous pop self-help book. The second half of the book, primarily made up of case stories, is less interesting and beneficial.

Cover of Fundamentals of Software Architecture.

Fundamentals of Software Architecture

by Neal Ford · published 2020 · read 2023-02-28
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
A little bit of work reading. A great summary of common software architecture patterns, their strengths and weaknesses.

Cover of Unmasking Autism.

Unmasking Autism

by Devon Price · published 2022 · read 2023-02-25
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
A fantastic primer on Autism writen by an Autistic man. Very helpful as a neurotypical person to better understand and support Autistics around me.

Cover of My Bright Abyss.

My Bright Abyss

by Christian Wiman · published 2014 · read 2023-02-23
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
Some really stirring stuff here. I often struggle with poetry but Wiman hits a sweet spot of poetry along with elegant prose.

Cover of The Three-Body Problem.

The Three-Body Problem

by Liu Cixin · published 2014 · last read 2023-02-19
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
On re-read: still one of the most inventive sci-fi books I've read. Liu explores what interaction with an alien race of immense technology might be like, working at the quantum level as well as the interstellar. The first half of the book struggles to get going, but once the reveal happens and the book includes the alien civilization, the story comes alive.

Cover of The Peaceable Kingdom.

The Peaceable Kingdom

by Stanley Hauerwas · published 1983 · read 2023-02-18
★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
Maybe it's just a bit dated, but Hauerwas seems most focused here on non-violence among all the Christian ethic, and his heavy reliance on Yoder feels painful given what we now know about Yoder's personal conduct.

Cover of Sanctifying Interpretation.

Sanctifying Interpretation

by Chris E W Green · published 2020 · read 2023-02-17
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
One of the most helpful theological books I've read in a long time. Green looks first at the Christian vocation for the sake of others, then at how Christians are called to holiness, and only then finally to how the Scripture may be interpreted in a way that works holiness within us for the sake of others.

Cover of The Passenger.

The Passenger

by Cormac McCarthy · published 2022 · read 2023-02-07
★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
On one hand, it feels like if I'm not rating a McCarthy book highly, it's a shortcoming on my part, not his. And yet it doens't feel like top-tier McCarthy. Still distinctly his voice, but not quite in the tier of his classics.

Cover of Heretic.

Heretic

by Jeanna Kadlec · published 2022 · read 2023-02-06
★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
If there was ever a time for a 3.5 star rating, this is it. The writing is uneven in spots - the first chapter, and near the end. It gets tight and compelling when she starts describing her first queer relationship, and at the end when she talks about finding community and interacting with Jesus.

Cover of Reparations.

Reparations

by Duke L. Kwon · published 2021 · read 2023-02-04
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Meticulously researched and footnoted, two evangelical authors making an impassioned plea to their evangelical compatriots to acknowledge the history of white supremacy in the US and move toward repentance and reparations. The fact that it fell on deaf ears is not the fault of the authors.

Cover of Don't Cry for Me.

Don’t Cry for Me

by Daniel Black · published 2022 · read 2023-01-31
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
A novel written as a series of letters from a black father to his son. There's a huge amount of trauma being worked out in this book, both by the characters in the story and by the author who is writing this, per the Author Note in the front, as his own imaginative work of healing in his relationship with his father who is dying of Alzheimers.

Cover of Agent Josephine.

Agent Josephine

by Damien Lewis · published 2022 · read 2023-01-29
★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
This book tried to be too long with too little source material. The author (a British journalist) was working from 3 short books written by primary characters in the story, and with so little material he leaves us with nothing about Baker's life before or after the war, and gives us large swaths of WWII history that have little to do with Baker.

Cover of On The Soul and the Resurrection.

On The Soul and the Resurrection

by Saint Gregory (of Nyssa) · published 1993 · read 2023-01-25
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
A lucid, short treatise from a 4th-century father. Very readable translation, too!

Cover of Dead Lions.

Dead Lions

by Mick Herron · published 2014 · read 2023-01-21
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
Second book in the series, similar to the first. A little bit oblique, written with a little more style than your usual pop spy novel.

Cover of The Evolution of Knowledge.

The Evolution of Knowledge

by Jürgen Renn · published 2020 · read 2023-01-17
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
A thick book, Dr. Renn spends most of the time overviewing how human knowledge has accumulated over time. He spends frustratingly little time theorizing how those insights might lead us to think about the future. The "future" part is only about 15 pages at the end. I'm glad I read it just to stretch my brain, but I didn't come away from it with any deep thoughts about the future.

Cover of Out of the Embers.

Out of the Embers

by Bradley Jersak · published 2022 · read 2023-01-14
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Jersak describes the experience of spiritual deconstruction and the path through it to something better in gracious, loving terms. Rich in grace and wisdom, filled with the assurance of God's love, Jersak encourages those going through deconstruction to consider the words of (among others) Doystoevski and Simone Weil. The strongest bits of the book, though, are the first and third sections where he speaks pastorally to the challenged. Wonderful stuff.

Cover of Still Just a Geek.

Still Just a Geek

by Wil Wheaton · published 2021 · read 2023-01-07
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
Wil Wheaton is one of those guys I just admire. He's been so open about his challenges with his parents, his mental health, his career... and equally so open about his love for his family and his care for others who struggle. His updated, annotated memoir is a combination of his old blog posts, narrative pulling it together, and copious, almost Infinite Jest-ian footnotes. It's a delight.

Cover of Every Good Boy Does Fine.

Every Good Boy Does Fine

by Jeremy Denk · published 2022 · read 2023-01-06
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
I love reading books by pianists. Mostly they remind me that while I'm a decent classical pianist, there's a long step between me and a real, serious concert pianist.