Throughout March’24 I have added 7 books to my library. Hopefully, you can also find 1 or 2 for your own library!
The selection rules were:
the book had to be recommended by someone directly or by an article I have read or a podcast I have listened.
the book should be less than €5 (usually via Kindle -promotions- or 2nd hand).
“… A wildly original debut novel about two young women navigating the complex worlds of Andy Warhol's Factory, and coming of age in 1960s New York
New York City, 1966. Seventeen-year-old Mae lives in a run-down apartment with her alcoholic mother and her mother's sometimes-boyfriend, Mikey. She is turned off by the petty girls at her high school, and the sleazy men she typically meets. When she drops out, she is presented with a job offer that will remake her world entirely: she is hired as a typist for the artist Andy Warhol.
Warhol is composing an unconventional novel by recording the conversations and experiences of his many famous and alluring friends. Tasked with transcribing these tapes alongside several other girls, Mae quickly befriends Shelley and the two of them embark on a surreal adventure at the fringes of the countercultural movement. Going to parties together, exploring their womanhood and sexuality, this should be the most enlivening experience of Mae's life. But as she grows increasingly obsessed with the tapes and numb to her own reality, Mae must grapple with the thin line between art and voyeurism and determine how she can remain her own person as the tide of the sixties sweeps over her.
Nothing Special is a whip-smart coming-of-age story about friendship, independence and the construction of art and identity, bringing to life the experience of young women in this iconic and turbulent moment. …”
“…The theme of this book is simple. The price – the number someone puts on a product to help consumers decide to buy that product – comes from data. Specifically, itcomes from statistically modeling the data.
This book gives the reader the statistical modeling tools needed to get the number to put on a product. But statistical modeling is not done in a vacuum. Economic and statistical principles and theory conjointly provide the background and framework for the models. Therefore, this book emphasizes two interlocking components of modeling: economic theory and statistical principles.
The economic theory component is sufficient to provide understanding of the basic principles for pricing, especially about elasticities, which measure the effects of pricing on key business metrics. Elasticity estimation is the goal of statistical modeling, so attention is paid to the concept and implications of elasticities.
The statistical modeling component is advanced and detailed covering choice (conjoint, discrete choice, MaxDiff) and sales data modeling. Experimental design principles, model estimation approaches, and analysis methods are discussed and developed for choice models. Regression fundamentals have been developed for sales model specification and estimation and expanded for latent class analysis. …”
“…In one of the most acclaimed novels of the year, her first in over a decade, Claire Kilroy takes us deep into the mind of her unforgettable heroine.
Exploring the clash of fierce love for a new life with a seismic change in identity, she vividly realises the tumultuous emotions of a new mother. As her marriage strains and she struggles with questions of love, autonomy creativity and the passing of time, an old friend makes a welcome return - but can he really offer a lifeline to the woman she used to be? …”
“…A thousand years of history and contemporary evidence make one thing clear. Progress is not automatic but depends on the choices we make about technology. New ways of organizing production and communication can either serve the narrow interests of an elite or become the foundation for widespread prosperity.
Much of the wealth generated by agricultural advances during the European Middle Ages was captured by the Church and used to build grand cathedrals while the peasants starved. The first hundred years of industrialization in England delivered stagnant incomes for workers, while making a few people very rich. And throughout the world today, digital technologies and artificial intelligence increase inequality and undermine democracy through excessive automation, massive data collection, and intrusive surveillance.
It doesn't have to be this way. Power and Progress demonstrates that the path of technology was once - and can again be - brought under control. The tremendous computing advances of the last half century can become empowering and democratizing tools, but not if all major decisions remain in the hands of a few hubristic tech leaders striving to build a society that elevates their own power and prestige.
With their breakthrough economic theory and manifesto for a better society, Acemoglu and Johnson provide the understanding and the vision to reshape how we innovate and who really gains from technological advances so we can create real prosperity for all. …”
“…At a time when AI and digital platforms are under fire, Orly Lobel, a renowned tech policy scholar, defends technology as a powerful tool we can harness to achieve equality and a better future.
Much has been written about the challenges tech presents to equality and democracy. But we can either criticize big data and automation or steer it to do better. Lobel makes a compelling argument that while we cannot stop technological development, we can direct its course according to our most fundamental values.
With provocative insights in every chapter, Lobel masterfully shows that digital technology frequently has a comparative advantage over humans in detecting discrimination, correcting historical exclusions, subverting long-standing stereotypes, and addressing the world’s thorniest problems: climate, poverty, injustice, literacy, accessibility, speech, health, and safety.
Lobel's vivid examples—from labor markets to dating markets—provide powerful evidence for how we can harness technology for good. The book’s incisive analysis and elegant storytelling will change the debate about technology and restore human agency over our values. …”
“…Few books before "All Quiet on the Western Front" dared to describe in such graphic detail the privations, challenges and horrors faced by soldiers in the thick of battle. Thus, upon the publication of the this book in 1928 (a quasi-autobiographical war novel by German army veteran Erich Maria Remarque), it became an immediate sensation and a publishing juggernaut, selling 2.5 million copies in 22 languages in its first 18 months in print.
Since then, it become a classic of the genre; a war novel that examines life on the front lines from the perspective of a soldier who has actually experienced the fears, triumphs and intense mental anguish soldiers typically endure. The book also provides a unique perspective on the difficulties soldiers face in returning from war and attempting to re-enter life as civilians. It is presented here in its original and unabridged format and includes a biography of the author. …”
“…Reed Hastings, el cofundador, presidente y CEO de Netflix, desvela por primera vez la sorprendente y poco ortodoxa cultura de una de las compañías más creativas y de mayor éxito en la historia de Silicon Valley.
Nunca antes ha existido una empresa como Netflix. No solo por su extraordinario liderazgo en la industria de los medios, la tecnología y el entretenimiento o por su capacidad de generar miles de millones de dólares de ingresos anuales, con más de 167 millones de usuarios en 190 países. Netflix es, además, una empresa revolucionaria sobre todo por su cultura de gestión radical y a contracorriente de las ideas que tradicionalmente se dan por sentadas.
Cuando Reed Hastings fundó Netflix, desarrolló una filosofía corporativa y unos principios de gestión que han proporcionado flexibilidad, velocidad y audacia a la organización y le han permitido alcanzar grandes éxitos.
Esta es la fascinante historia de una compañía singular y de su extraordinaria expansión por el mundo entero. …”
Happy readings!