Another book ...
Wow ... it's been quite a while since I "knocked down" a book ... I got stuck in a couple of "thick" ones (one thick in body, one thick in prose) and have been dragging through those. This, one, however, was a real treat ... fascinating and beautifully written.
Why the Reckless Survive: And Other Secrets of Human Nature is a collection of essays by anthropologist Melvin Konner, looking at various "human mysteries" through lenses of numerous primitive, foreign, and historical cultures. I'm surprised at the negative reviews this got, as it was both engrossing and a pleasure to read. Like many of the things I have been finally getting off my to-be-read shelves, this comes from 1990, and it appears to have been long out of print. Lucky for you, should you be interested in checking it out, as Amazon has used copies for as little as 45¢!
I started reading this one back in June, and it's a testament to the chaos of my life since then that I've only just now finished it (especially given the slow going on the other two books I'm in the midst of). I have been frequently tempted to share long passages from this book with my LJ readers as the perceptions of "human nature" in
Why the Reckless Survive are real gems, but I figured that Mr. Konner and his publishers would probably prefer me
not excerpting half his book on-line here, and I reckon that those intrepid souls who have me on their Friends List would just as well not have reams of stuff to read through. I do recommend getting this one, however, especially as cheaply as it can be had on the used market!
I'm not sure what I'm going to start next ... I'm still plowing through John Leslie's
Universes, which is quite a struggle as I strongly disagree with his "design" stance and he seems to be grasping at
any half shred of data that might prove a "created universe". I'm hoping to finish that up before slotting in something new!
