Welcome to Litsy!

Wonderful!

Stein has traveled to collect these charming stories of by-gone professions that survive to this day, often families continue on the traditions: African ancient instrument caretaker, Japanese soy sauce brewing (sounds wayyy tastier than the modern stuff we can buy at the grocery store), Indian mirror making, German Bridegroom‘s Oak postman (write letters to it to find your partner, they actually get delivered!), and more. I was charmed.

Policy of preventative deterrence = death by Sonoran desert.

Funneling migrants through the desert is intentional and cruel. Common sense suggests until the root causes of the migration are addressed it will not end. When migrants say they would rather die on the trail than remain in their home countries it speaks volumes.

Jason‘s second book focusing on human smugglers is even better because it really lays bare the complexities of the issue.

A charming survey of some whimsical and nearly forgotten traditions.

It has some interesting material on the society created in a part of Madagascar by European pirates and Malagasy natives. The local population had a lot of mixture of which the pirates were the latest. However, it suffers from a lack of sources and flaws within them. However it reads like an incomplete essay and relies on a great deal of surmise. The author sets out a proposition which he is ultimately unable to sustain.

A really fascinating look at the development of societies across the globe and why certain areas ended up with certain staples while other areas remained primitive for decades.
It is a bit dry and academic so if you can get past those elements then you will have a nice perspective of human development.

#nonfiction #history #pulitzer

#nonfiction #history

An absolutely delightful exploration of 10 endangered practices around the world, and the people working to keep the traditions alive.

This was marvelous! From a lace like pasta in Italy to a tree full of lovelorn letters in Germany, this was a wonderful read. I loved the focus on the people who are working to pass on these traditions, & and the variety of what humans want to protect. 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗

The Anthropology class I took was a disaster, but this book was its saving grace. I actually enjoyed the readings and learned far more than I had expected. I encourage anyone to take an anthropology or sociology class if they can. I mentioned earlier that is it just so fascinating to know that you aren‘t all that different from someone from far away, yet you can learn new ways of existing as well. As we say with our boys, “Different, not less.”