Kieran Setiya A phenomenal coincidence happened as soon as I started reading the book. This book shared an epigraph with the book I had just finished! “If I am not for myself, who will be for me?And if I am for myself only, what am I?And if not now, when?” (attributed to the Talmud) Of […]
Andre Agassi I picked up the book after reading an interesting anecdote from it on how Agassi cracked the Boom Boom Becker serve, and then only sparingly used the knowledge so Becker wouldn’t know he knew the tell! I haven’t read autobiographies before and didn’t know what to expect, but what I did get from […]
Simone de Beauvoir Sometime back, during a college reunion, D’s friend mentioned how she was shocked when she realised that she (and therefore us) were ‘those people’ who were being referred to as ‘middle aged’. A couple of years ago, I had written a blog post on entering the second half of my life, which […]
Through many unforgettable people, Jessica Bruder brings to life the lives of those who have chosen, or been forced, to become homeless. Written with inquisitiveness, understanding and empathy, this is a must-read that offers lessons about, and to, humanity.
Schopenhauer is believed to have said “A man can do as he wills, but not will as he wills.” We can replace will with ‘want’ and it still holds. But we have convinced ourselves otherwise – that we desire things independently. Based on the work and philosophy of René Girard, and his own experiences, Luke Burgis sets about dismantling this notion – what the book calls the Romantic Lie – self delusion.