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True Ownership
True ownership requires full-time dedication. I’ve been thinking about this quote that’s attributed to Jeff Bezos that I came across in Working Backwards by Colin Bryar and Bill Carr. The best way to fail at inventing something is by making it somebody’s part-time job. The quote captures the thinking behind Amazon’s Single-Threaded Leadership (STL) approach:… — read more
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Part 4 of 4: Ending – my notes on reading “Roadside Picnic”
This is the final of four parts of my notes after I finished reading Roadside Picnic. In this final part (see parts one, two and three), I classify my notes as “Ending”. SPOILER ALERT: By the end of Roadside Picnic, Redrick Schuhart has reached the object rumoured to grant a person’s deepest wish. He has… — read more
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Part 3 of 4: Meaning – my notes on reading “Roadside Picnic”
This is the third of four parts of my notes after I finished reading Roadside Picnic. In this third part (see parts one and two), I classify my notes as “Meaning”: What the roadside picnic really means. The title Roadside Picnic sounds almost pleasant, but its meaning is anything but comforting. One character (Dr Valentine… — read more
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Part 2 of 4: Classification – my notes on reading “Roadside Picnic”
This is the second of four parts of my notes after I finished reading Roadside Picnic. In this second part (see part one), I classify my notes as “Classification”: Sci-fi without scientific answers. For much of Roadside Picnic, I wondered what kind of science fiction I was reading. There are no conversations with aliens. There… — read more
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Part 1 of 4: Expectation – my notes on reading “Roadside Picnic”
This is the first of four parts of my notes after I finished reading Roadside Picnic. In this first part, I classify my notes as “Expectation”: The story I expected but didn’t find. What do I mean by that? The blurb of Roadside Picnic led me to expect a particular story: Protagonist Redrick Schuhart would… — read more
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Reading “Roadside Picnic” by Arkady & Boris Strugatsky
After finishing Roadside Picnic, I wondered about the point of the novel. I also wondered why it is classified as science fiction. The book blurb kind of oversells the novel as an emotionally driven rescue mission: a father enters the Zone one last time to save his mutated daughter, but it’s not what I expected.… — read more
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“Roadside Picnic” by Arkady & Boris Strugatsky
This is a 100-word book review. Roadside Picnic by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky is less about alien contact than humanity’s need to make the unknowable meaningful. The protagonist, Redrick Schuhart, is a “Stalker” repeatedly drawn into the contaminated Zone. This Strugatsky novel explores greed, scientific ambition, guilt, love, and desperation. I initially expected a clear… — read more
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“The Panda, the Cat and the Dreadful Teddy” by Paul Magrs
It took me several pages into the book before I got used to the rather sweary language. It’s full of the f-word, which the gin-loving Panda is really fond of spouting, which kind of irked me in the beginning, but I accepted it in the end. But yes, it’s a sweary book, and it’s a… — read more
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“Burning Chrome” by William Gibson
I had trouble comprehending most of the stories, but I do see recurring themes in a few. Example: ‘New Rose Hotel’ and ‘Burning Chrome’ have the storyline of stealing data, manipulating systems and beating corporations, with someone wanted out, someone wanted love, someone wanted money, and nobody got exactly what they wanted. Note to self:… — read more
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“A Bright Cold Day: The Wonder of George Orwell” by Nathan Waddell
I finished A Bright Cold Day: The Wonder of George Orwell by Nathan Waddell, and I can say this plainly: I have developed a healthy obsession with Orwell! I’ll nickname the book ABCD. It made me curious about the person as a whole. Rather than following a conventional biographical approach, Waddell frames Orwell as ‘a… — read more
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