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I was finishing this heavyweight nonfiction title about human enlightenment just as the Israel crisis began. I was feeling like everything in this age was great with the caveat of the ever present racism, social injustices, and on and on…but then.
Pinker makes the case that we‘re living in the best time possible and that humans will only continue to get smarter, better able to deal with death and disease and hopefully live in peace.⬇️

LEEOOON READ !!! This book is very good everybody should read it. Thank you fir reading my review! I like big booty

Enlightenment is when a wave realises it's the ocean.

This century might seem to bring darkness in many aspects of life making us vulnerable, leaving us feeling dejected and hopeless. But forget not the accomplishments that have paved way for a better future that our ancestors could only dream of. This book rekindles the pride and joy we take in being humans and reminds us of how far we have come and how far we may go if we keep moving on.

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People see violence as moral, not immoral: across the world and throughout history, more people have been murdered to mete out justice than to satisfy greed.

As we care about more of humanity, we‘re apt to mistake the harms around us for signs of how low the world has sunk rather than how high our standards have risen.

#GratefulReads - NonFiction:🌬Tons of snow outside. An unexpected office closure due to weather.🌨 Favorite orange turtleneck sweater rescued from the just-about-to-wash-that laundry pile.🧺 Homemade soup that was made in advance on Sunday and then frozen to be thawed on Thanksgiving morning is now in demand TODAY!🍲That‘s okay...there‘s already a backup plan. And last...a commitment to read some non-fiction in the month of November.👍🏽
#NFNov

I listened to this on audio too but it still took me forever to finish! Could've been 50-100 pages shorter, and I think Pinker should've stayed away from talking about marginalized issues because he seemed awkward at best, insensitive at worst. Overall this was worth the read, especially Part 2 (most of the book) that talks about hard data on quantifiable topics. Everything may SEEM like the worst, but it's almost definitely not.👍

#datascience

This managed to be interesting and boring at the same time. The content was good but the writing wasn't very engaging.

Also on sale in US ebook stores

I‘m in a nonfiction binge right now. I LOVE Pinker! I also love my Frug 😍

#nonfiction

This book is getting on my last nerve! I invested much more time in it before bailing than usual, because of Bill Gates' recommendation. I'm finding it dull, tedious, repetitive, and sometimes frustrating. I'm not satisfied that having made X amount of progress from where we were 10 generations ago is enough. Some of the author's assertions are insensitive to the point of offensiveness to certain groups. Enough!

OK, really well done. But craptastically exhausting. Took forever to finish. Really well researched Ns offers some great insights into explaining things as they really are (meaning our best understanding given the most verified information available). I thoroughly recommend this book, with some caveats. Some of the generalizations from the available data undermine the importance of local pockets that deal with a different norm.

Nyt notable book 2018

In Asheville, NC for the Chihuly glass exhibit at the Biltmore, and of course my first stop upon arrival was my favorite bookstore. Love me some Europa and NYRB editions! #indiebookstores

“There is no limit to the betterments we can attain if we continue to apply knowledge to enhance human flourishing.”

I mostly liked that this book is hopeful. He had to choose areas of progress to support his point, so there are problems (ex. racism) that he glazed over.

He was nasty to environmentalists who didn‘t share his vision and social justice warriors.

Some good stuff, especially in the sections on progress, but not a perfect read.

I liked this book for the simple reason that it gives hope. Pinker shows us to look at the data to see progress continues, rarely, if ever, reverting to darker ages. He is careful to inform doomsday rhetoric comes from conservatives as well as liberals/progressives. For example, we should not tolerate racist segregation any more than we should tolerate labor-intensive organic food movements. Neither is a panacea.

(Pinker, 2018, p. 235)
I feel this is great thought for Memorial Day.

My granddaughter is safely returned to her parental units after her sleepover with me. I can finally dig in to this 453-page tome. (453 pages!!!) I'm only on page 52. Wish me luck, or, if generous, send wine for fortification.

The Skeptics Book Club agrees that despite some flaws, this is a pick. Lots of fuel for discussion. #nonfiction #bookclub

Spending a grey LA day working my way through Pinker‘s latest. #entropy

I read this based off of Bill Gates recommendation that it's his favorite book. Whereas I agree that the world is infinitely better than it has been, there were a few points (environment isn't that bad, people over 50 being the highest opoid addicts, to name a few ideas) that I couldn't see his point. He also breezily glossed over some minority perspectives that really are an issue. So, it was interesting but not great.

I started writing this list in my Bullet Journal 2 weeks ago... I blame my backlog of All The Books! Podcast. Litsy-ers, any on the list you are really excited about reading or better yet have read? #tbr #tbrforever

TONIGHT! So excited.

1st page....off to a good start!

Some sections were great, but others were a bit flat.

Here‘s today‘s book haul from R. J. Julia. I really had to work hard to stop myself at just three.

Audiobook #bujo is a no go.
#catsoflitsy

Opting for the audiobook since I have Audible credits and a huge TBR stack. Hoping it will leave me feeling better about the world like Better Angels did.

Thought I'd share with my fellow Littens! His new fave is the tagged book, and it actually sounds pretty good!
Full article here: https://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/bill-gates-just-declared-this-optimistic-re...