Category: Non Fiction

In Praise of Shadows — Junichiro Tanizaki

By 5t4n5

In Praise of Shadows -- Junichiro TanizakiI’m currently reading The Power of Chowa, wherein Akemi mentions this book in passing.   When i read the name of the writer i was sure i had some of his books in my pile of books waiting to be read, and sure enough, one of those books was this one.

So i put aside The Power of Chowa for a while and gave this a read to fully understand the impression that Akemi was trying to give.

And wow, this is definitely one to put on the shelf next to The Book of Tea.   Both books have wonderful passages of ranting, but it’s intelligent ranting fuelled by a genuine passion for something truly precious; and in between the passages of ranting one gets some wonderful, thought provoking passages of delightful, descriptive writing: this book is like a painting in words.

Written in the 1930’s — concerning Japan’s modernisation — it’s news to me to read how, even before WWII and the surrender to the USA, Japan’s desire to ape American culture was already underway.   But, that aside, i do feel that Junichiro fails to appreciate that even in the west we have lost so many of our own shadows.   It seems that most of my life, here in Europe, we have been hell bent on illuminating everything to ridiculous levels, banishing all shadow wherever it may lurk.

The never ending pursuit of cleaning out the dirt and dust and any corners where it may lurk: banish the shadows for your own health’s sake!   The continued insistence on ridiculous levels of cleanliness and sterility within and without our homes, which has lead to ever lower immune function and plenty of allergies along with it.

And it’s not just the shadows, it’s any semblance of quiet we will blast sound into.   Where now can we truly be quiet and stare into the night sky and see the stars as they truly are?   When was the last time you truly experienced the peaceful quite and shadows of the real world without modern technology to protect and coddle you?   Or are you one of the new people, ever terrified of what unknowns may be lurking there where you hear and see nothing but vague outlines and impressions?

I agree with Junichiro, we have lost something truly precious.

The only thing i would say about this book is that, for me at least, the “Afterword” would be better placed as a “Foreword”.   I just feel that it would focus ones attention on certain things a lot more if they had been pointed out before hand instead of afterwards.   I will definitely be reading this again at some point before i die and when i do i will definitely read the “Afterword” first.

Junichiro’s Page

#japan #junichirotanizaki

Dopamine Nation — Anna Lembke

By 5t4n5

I recently discovered Anna when she appeared on the two podcasts below.   So i immediately got hold of this book and decided to put all my other reading on hold and dive straight in: some times i feel some things are just that important.

So having listened to the two podcasts was there anything more to be learned from the book?

Yes.

Without a doubt, both podcasts were great in their own unique ways, Rich and Michael approach this topic from two very different angles and flavour their podcasts accordingly, and when it comes to the book i think that the reader will find their own bag within it.

One thing Anna isn’t within this book is judging and preachy: she’s not telling anyone what to do or what not to do.   Anna simply lays out a bunch of case histories and how the human propensity to seek pleasure and minimise pain within this age of abundance is what is ultimately causing so many problems.   The reader can make their own mind up as to where they are on this wild and crazy spectrum of addiction that is plaguing our age and species, and also what they may wish to do about it.

Super good and definitely a book to put on the shelf next to The Pleasure Trap: if you haven’t read that then seriously, get reading that too.

But, whether you wish to take the time to read Dopamine Nation or not, i do hope you’ll take the time to listen to the podcasts: both are different, so please don’t just listen to one.

Rich Roll Podcast

Finding Mastery

The Rich Roll one is available on video if you prefer it that way:

Anna’s Page

#addiction #drugs #dopamine #annalembke

The Blue Zones, Second Edition — Dan Buettner

By 5t4n5

The Blue Zones, Second Edition -- Dan BuettnerThere’s a lot of interesting stuff contained within this book.   Good luck if you can find yourself in a situation where you have all the support and society around you that allows you to achieve these things.

Sadly, most of us simply don’t have the land available to farm our own organic vegetables and fruit for every meal, most people don’t live in places where they can drink pure water that isn’t some other town’s poorly-treated sewage dumped upstream into the river that fills the local reservoir, and most people don’t get to live in places free of all the traffic, and industrial, produced noise and air pollution.

Most people won’t ever be surrounded by family and friends their whole lives that would support, share and help them in achieving the same organic wholefood, stress free, pollution free, clean living lifestyle that is espoused in these stories.

I’d heard a lot of good things about this book and i really was looking forward to reading it.   Having read it, i just find most of it disingenuous, in that it is utterly ridiculous to suggest that most people could have a lifestyle like this even if they wanted to.   But hey, don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater, maybe you can find some things within to help you.

It’s even suggested at the end of the book that you build your own blue zone.   Good luck with that, i sincerely hope you can find yourself some space in this ever more overpopulated world that leaves less and less space free from air pollution, light pollution, noise, junk food, bad people, traffic, noise, industry, habitat destruction and all the rest of modern society’s garbage: because that’s what you need to do.   Maybe when Antarctica finally melts you’ll find some nice, free, unpolluted land, but i reckon the corporations will have beaten you to it with massive military, mining and construction projects.

My biggest gripe with this book is that there are far better ways for people to be thinking about improving their health and longevity in today’s modern societies.   This book suggests 10 extra years of healthy life, but consider, when it’s becoming more and more common that people are sick and diseased and reliant upon medication to survive in their 30’s and 40’s, is 10 extra years all you really want?   I want 40 or 50 years of extra healthy life and this book isn’t offering that at all.

Dan’s Page

#danbuettner