Book Reviews - Page 1

Falling Angel by William Hjortsberg
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The semi-classic mystery/gothic/horror novel still holds up finely today. Written in 1978, it is set in New York in 1959. Written as an homage to Raymond Chandler, Ross MacDonold and Dashiel Hammett, it starts as a noir detective story and turns into something very different. The basis of the movie "Angel Heart", this is a fast paced, fun (though gruesome at times) read.

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Quantum Physics for Poets by Leon M. Lederman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Over the last few years my non-fiction reading has veered more and more to science books for the general reader. I recently decided to plug a big hole in my general science knowledgeby looking for a book on quantum physics. I spent a few months searching for the best introductory text on the subject and and couldn't find the perfect book for my needs. When Leon Lederman (with Christopher Hill) released his intro text, "Quantum Physics for Poets", I decided why not. In spite of the fact that the "Poets" in the title is little more than a gimmick, I chose well. His introduction implies his market is college freshman but it didn't feel like a textbook. Still, his experience as a teacher shines through as he clearly understands where the non-science minded get tripped up. The book easily walked through the hard concepts and repeated basic ideas throughout the book to allay utter confusion. While I am still confused in a lot of ways, reading "Poets" has opened the door on the field for me. I already have found that reading the book has brought a greater depth of understanding to the science articles I read in the news every day. So I suggest this is a great place to start. Now to string theory...

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In the Plex: How Google Thinks, Works, and Shapes Our Lives by Steven Levy
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

While not for those who don't have interest first, this is a good overview of the scope and history of Google as a company. If the answer to the question "Do you want to know how they developed Google analytics?" is no then I would skip this book.  There is no shady behind scenes drama.  "In the Plex" is just the product of a lot of interviews with the main players at Google. You are left amazed at the current complexity of their once tiny project and the fact that a company with such an odd management style has been able to grow to such a monstrous size.  One take away from the book, it is nice to have a huge profit margin so that you can try anything you want.


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