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Excellent memoir; the most encouraging work I've read that's also fairly realistic about the major plight of the rampant injustice wrought by the American ruling class. Essentially, the notion that the role of large-scale organizing of the oppressed has been effective in two regimes: (1) the Civil Rights movement, and (2) the anti-Vietnam war movement. Admittedly, though, those two regimes (the war economy and racism) are now worsening and arguably have only changed form, rather than measurably improved. However, I think there's something to his optimism.

Required reading for any avid technologist or cheerleader thereof hoping to “change the world” in $ill¥ con-arti$t Valle¥.

Very entertaining; both a personal account and a wider investigation into the misdeeds of the above demographic. The only thing missing is reflection on the gentrification aspect.

Mundane, nihilistic garbage. Just because emotions might be related to morality (shocker!) doesn't somehow invalidate morality as an overall concept, or that the world is an incredibly unjust and cruel one that should be changed as soon and thoroughly as possible.

And even if morality merely serves the emotions of the conceiver, that just means we have to consider whether this conceiver's emotions are morally good or bad. Circular.

Quite a striking work of fiction, and one that's unforgettable. Very credibly-crafted tale of resilience in the face of unbelievable woe, and one that seems unfortunately fairly likely to occur if the world keeps on its current course.

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Update: 6 months later, this book turns out to be one that I think of almost daily. It was hard to really grasp the gravity of the tales therein, or just how appropriate they are for the currently nigh-apocalyptic world we live in.

Somehow manages to be both overly expansive in scientific citations and thoroughly unconvincing. Maybe it's because the book is a rotting word-salad easily summarized by "look at how great of a person I am, here are a few basically disconnected things I happen to do, be like me. Here are unrelated research efforts explained in tedious detail."

The only other thing of note are the nauseating platitudes. At one point he actually spells out meaning of the "glass half-full" proverb. It's like a ninth-grader trying to reach a two-page word count in his remedial English class.

I've come away from this book less likely to be compassionate than I was going in.

A very thorough and comprehensive introduction to feline communication and parenting, although sometimes rambling, disorganized, and a bit narcissistic. He makes frequent scornful comments about pet owners -- understandable, I suppose, as his job entailed him going into the homes of some likely heartless/dim-witted folks that were mistreating their cat.

Still, Jackson seems to have amazing insight into feline behavior and how to make them feel as comfortable as possible. This seems like the book to get to solve any problem that could conceivably arise with one's cat.

He lost me right around the time when his benevolent, wealthy family back east happily took him back in with little complaint. Not being an option for me personally, I began to resent what I then saw as a sort of laziness, rather than admirable daring to live an unconventional life.

An extremely imaginative world, but without much philosophical or social substance to it. Couldn't make it all the way through the audiobook, as I became sort of lost given the constant change of setting and characters that this book entails. Thus, it was neither entertaining nor instructive, ultimately, although it had a few key moments of interest.