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The Story Paradox
- How Our Love of Storytelling Builds Societies and Tears Them Down
- By: Jonathan Gottschall
- Narrated by: Joshua Kane
- Length: 7 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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Humans are storytelling animals. Stories are what make our societies possible. Countless books celebrate their virtues. But Jonathan Gottschall, an expert on the science of stories, argues that there is a dark side to storytelling we can no longer ignore. Storytelling, the very tradition that built human civilization, may be the thing that destroys it.
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A bit of a mixed bag with some amazing discussion
- By Justin on 04-27-22
- The Story Paradox
- How Our Love of Storytelling Builds Societies and Tears Them Down
- By: Jonathan Gottschall
- Narrated by: Joshua Kane
A bit of a mixed bag with some amazing discussion
Reviewed: 04-27-22
I went into this book with an open mind. I already kind of understand the subject matter of the book. Jordan Peterson talks about how grand narratives have made us what we are today and it's a logical step to conclude that stories and narratives can have bad outcomes. The author gives many examples of this, including discussing how it was simple narrative that ultimately lead the Rwandan Genocide, a bloodbath that would make the Nazi's blush (not in scope, but in brutality).
It challenged me with interesting new concepts, perhaps things that I implicitly understood but couldn't put into words. Villains are important parts of stories, and as story telling animals we tend to flatten them out, and feel empathy towards victims in stories. The part that I found interesting is the discussion about how empathy can breed enmity, when we empathize with one party, we flatten the cause of that pain into a caricature of a villain, which actually hurts our ability to be objectively assess the situation in real life. But in the real world, villains, like all people, are round, not flat. They have their good points and bad points, the villains of real life are not mustache twirling men who kidnap damsels and tie them to train tracks. The villains of real life tend to be people who have many other people who care about them, see them as good but misunderstood people, perhaps people just in need of a little help.
Another great point brought up is kind of the inversion of the common saying: "those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it". Perhaps, in some situations, it's actually better to forget the past. It's these stories of the past that don't let old transgressions die, it keeps them alive and seething, and in the right circumstances it can lead to extreme violence or social strife.
The book is chock full of these types of discussions. It's pretty amazing in that regard.
The mixed bag aspect is that the author wears his politics on his sleeve. I don't typically care about each individuals personal politics and people can certainly have their say in any way that they see fit, but the biggest shame is that it will limit who will potentially read/listen to this rather remarkable book. At one point he sounded completely pathological when talking about President Trump. It wasn't out of context or just thrown in, but he basically discusses how Donald Trump is like a story telling king and he has written his own legend onto public consciousness. To me, this is an absolute statement of fact, since I was a child people have adored Donald Trump, an adoration I never really understood. The author had such pathological hatred for the man that he literally wouldn't say his name in the book (he flattened him into a real life Voldemort, literally refusing to name him).
When I got the above section, and it went on about how terrible President Trump was, I actually thought the ending was ruining the book (it's discussed in the book itself how a bad ending to a story can ruin all that came before it). I had intended to come on here and slam the author for his lack of self reflection. But, he actually beat me to it, much to my elation. In the section title "PS", he calls out his own error in doing this to someone he clearly does not like. He discusses that he forced himself to round out Donald Trump for the book. I don't think he necessarily did a good job on this, but he clearly tried. And if a well written book like this doesn't force you or the author to look inward, then you would have to question if it was effective.
This is a good listen, I would have loved to give it a higher rating but the authors own politics actually detracts from the overall book, and that is not to say I necessarily disagreed with the author on some of the politically driven parts of the book. You may experience some grating feelings on points that come off as overly political, but it pays off in the end. At least it did for me.
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2 people found this helpful
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Modern Romance
- An Investigation
- By: Aziz Ansari, Eric Klinenberg
- Narrated by: Aziz Ansari, Eric Klinenberg
- Length: 6 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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At some point, every one of us embarks on a journey to find love. We meet people, date, get into and out of relationships, all with the hope of finding someone with whom we share a deep connection. This seems standard now, but it’s wildly different from what people did even just decades ago. Single people today have more romantic options than at any point in human history. With technology, our abilities to connect with and sort through these options are staggering. So why are so many people frustrated?
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Entertaining and informative
- By ty on 08-23-15
- Modern Romance
- An Investigation
- By: Aziz Ansari, Eric Klinenberg
- Narrated by: Aziz Ansari, Eric Klinenberg
Amazingly insightful work
Reviewed: 04-12-16
What did you love best about Modern Romance?
Aziz reading it was the best part. His comedy is some of my favorite and he adds some special Aziz brand flavor to the reading.
What’s the most interesting tidbit you’ve picked up from this book?
I knew dating life and social relationships had changed significantly, but it's amazing how much they have changed since even just the 1980's. Every generation has something to add to the dating and romance world.
Any additional comments?
I couldn't suggest this more. The work was well researched and insightful, it was funny to hear Aziz read it. I usually don't like to throw my monthly credit at something that is not a big bang for my buck. But at 6.5 hours it's completely worth spending a credit on for the content alone.
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Thinking, Fast and Slow
- By: Daniel Kahneman
- Narrated by: Patrick Egan
- Length: 20 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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The guru to the gurus at last shares his knowledge with the rest of us. Nobel laureate Daniel Kahneman's seminal studies in behavioral psychology, behavioral economics, and happiness studies have influenced numerous other authors, including Steven Pinker and Malcolm Gladwell. In Thinking, Fast and Slow, Kahneman at last offers his own, first book for the general public. It is a lucid and enlightening summary of his life's work. It will change the way you think about thinking. Two systems drive the way we think and make choices, Kahneman explains....
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Difficult Listen, but Probably a Great Read
- By Mike Kircher on 01-12-12
- Thinking, Fast and Slow
- By: Daniel Kahneman
- Narrated by: Patrick Egan
An epic work showing the very shape of our world.
Reviewed: 11-07-12
If you could sum up Thinking, Fast and Slow in three words, what would they be?
EvocativeScientificPervasive
Were the concepts of this book easy to follow, or were they too technical?
The concepts were easy to follow. They were just technical enough that they didn't feel completely for the layman.
Have you listened to any of Patrick Egan’s other performances before? How does this one compare?
I was a huge fan of this reader. I haven't listened to any of his previous work, but I would be more than happy to hear him read other books, he is better than most people who read in scientific fields.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
I did want to listen to it all at once, but it's not a small book. I listened while I was driving mostly. But I enjoyed it so much that I bought the actual book for when I was not driving.
Any additional comments?
Amazing book. It was strange hearing from the man who's work is so quoted in other peoples work. But it was amazingly freeing. Just to demonstrate how pervasive his work really is: I have yet to listen to a book that deals with psychology of decisions/economics/general psychological motivations that have not quoted his work. He was also quoted in a book on Mathematics by Leonard Mlodinow and a book on Neurological Research by Michael Gazzaniga. And they aren't even dealing directly with Psychology or Economics.
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The Genius in All of Us
- New Insights into Genetics, Talent, and IQ
- By: David Shenk
- Narrated by: Mark Deakins
- Length: 5 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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With irresistibly persuasive vigor, David Shenk debunks the long-standing notion of genetic giftedness, and presents dazzling new scientific research showing how greatness is in the reach of every individual. DNA does not make us who we are. Forget everything you think you know about genes, talent, and intelligence, he writes. In recent years, a mountain of scientific evidence has emerged suggesting a completely new paradigm: not talent scarcity, but latent talent abundance.
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A New View on Genius
- By Laura on 06-28-10
- The Genius in All of Us
- New Insights into Genetics, Talent, and IQ
- By: David Shenk
- Narrated by: Mark Deakins
Great listen on the cutting edge of neuroscience..
Reviewed: 12-19-11
What did you love best about The Genius in All of Us?
This is a great book. It's very up to date with citation of many of modern scientific studies. Usually a book like this is very up and down. Some exciting research mixed with some very boring downside. But this managed to keep me on my toes. I am actually looking forward to listening this again after listening to a few other books about neurology and psychology, hopefully gaining a better understanding of the whole picture. I loved how they brought up the most successful people being the ones who did not give up. It's really all a numbers game, this concept went beautifully with
Which scene was your favorite?
I listened to the concluding chapter a few times because it sums up the book really well.
Any additional comments?
I can't suggest this enough.
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3 people found this helpful