[Jaguar]

Originally Posted by GTO

this one is an EXCELLENT book on the Satyam fiasco and how things went down.
The double life of Ramalinga Raju

This is something I have often thought about. Whenever a book or movie is made about a recent fraud (whether by an individual or a company), does the offending party get a cut/royalty? If yes, isn't it morally wrong to support a wrong-doer by patronizing the item?

PS: I've called out "recent" because the people involved are most likely alive and could directly get benefitted.

[casnov]

Just received it. Pretty sure it will be quite interesting. In middle of another book. Will start this next week.

[Jeroen]

Although written from an American point of view, I believe quite a number of thoughts and aspects in this book are true in any society.

These days a lot of emphasis is placed on jobs worth doing involve sitting at desks. At the same time we see your folks with university / College degrees who lack even the most basic of understanding of the simplest technology.

Pushing paper, being on Skype bridges has become the new norm. Manual work, or working with ones hand is frowned upon.



First published in 2009, still relevant.

The author Matthew Crawford takes you along his own experience and thought. Not everybody is suited for office work. And there is lots of manual work out there which requires tremendous skill, experience and can be mentally as challenging as any office job. He himself is a philosopher and mechanic. Fellow at the University of Virginia and owner of an independent motorcycle repair ship.

Appreciation of manual work various around the world. But it can be a good path to a secure living and an independent life.

I enjoyed reading it and I recognise a lot of what Matthew writes about. If you’re open to different thoughts/perspective about what could matter in your life, you would enjoy this book, I think.

Jeroen

[Sebring]

Picked up these two reads based on GTO's recommendations. While the Billion Dollar Loser is a vivid and carefully reported drama on the spectacular fall of Adam Neumann (Bangalore had a lot of WeWork facilities I looked up to, so their closure interested me), the Ramalinga Raju is a story of sheer fraud. Both empires bit the dust. Engrossing reads, nevertheless. Get these books, Guys. They're Gold.

[GTO]

Never really understood the appeal of this app, but then, I'm way older than the target demographic.

The Snapchat Story - Solid, entertaining & informative read on an insanely successful app which turned down Facebook's offer of $1 billion. On the downside, the author is clearly a fanboy and seems to worship Evan Spiegel. Ignore the hero worship & sugar coating. Also wish he had covered the IPO in-depth. Still, a good read and I will recommend it. 3.5 / 5 stars.

[N.A.GTC]

Here's my 'year in review' of sorts:

Indira by Katherine Frank

Well researched book, beautifully written. Was a little bit disappointed due to lack of focus on the political implications (or details, for that matter) of critical events such as Operation Blue Star or the Emergency. That being said, there already are a lot of (good) books about those topics, but this offers insight into the Indira the person. A good read.

Justice by Michael Sandel

Definitely recommended for anyone interested in jurisprudence or the philosophy of law. "What is the right thing to do?" is literally the tag line, and the best summary possible. Reminded me of my days in law school and the intense debates of classroom.

Fault Lines by Raghuram Rajan

I have not read much literature on macroeconomics (a little about the subprime crisis is all), so my opinion definitely not carries much value here - but I liked it. Easy to understand, and makes sense.

Bureaucrazy Gets Crazier by MK Kaw

It's a collection of essays written over several years by former IAS officer MK Kaw. A very satirical take on the nature of bureaucracy and the way government administration works. To quote a sentence from the book that has been found true in real life as well:

When two IAS officers meet for the first time, there is a preliminary interval of unease while they circle around and sniff at each other's tails, trying to guess at their relative seniority. Mere age is no guide, for a promotee is older but not so senior. Hair does not help either in these days of premature greyness and chemical dyes. The dilemma is whether you are to sir or be sirred, to patronize or be patronized.

An Outsider Everywhere by MK Kaw

An autobiography by Kaw. A good insight into how the government works at the district and state level, and what practical problems a good-intentioned (though not hyperactive) officer faces.

Born to Serve by Yogendra Narain

Absolutely terrible. The author has no clue how to write a book. No, wait, let me rephrase: the author has no clue how to write.
Again, it's an autobiography of a former IAS officer - a former defence secretary this time.
Some of the chapters are about 30 pages long; whereas some go on for 100+ pages. Book isn't divided properly into any systematic theme. It feels like an old uncle wanted to narrate some stories and did just that, without realising what he is saying. There are admissions of absolutely illegal acts about which author feels proud; there are incidents of absolute injustice perpetuated by the author about which he feels privileged to boast. Not worth the money, not worth the time.

The Great Partition by Yasmin Khan

Outstanding. It's an academic book, rather than a simple narration of a personal history or a historical account of that nature. The main argument is how the entire humanitarian crisis was definitely avoidable, and not inevitable as many believe. Discusses the failure of colonial powers and nationalist leaders (on all sides) to realise the magnitude of the situation. Though the language is slightly on the tougher side - a typical academic, history book written by an Oxford scholar. Again, reminded me of my college with the Noorani and Granville Austin texts for history & pol-science classes.

Getting to Yes by Roger Fischer and William Ury

Quite a good book, though, as the authors say towards the end, many of us who negotiate regularly would anyhow know the principles already. Regardless, a good reminder of the principles that work.




Currently reading: Poor Economics by Abhijit Banerjee & Esther Duflo. The year isn't over yet.

[Sebring]

Since it's vaccine season, I'm 're-reading' Bottle of Lies; a stunning expose on the Ranbaxy scandal. And, in my opinion, a 'must read'. 2. Jeff Bezos and his success trajectory 3. The Snapchat Story. All are engaging 'bed-side reads' on cyclone imposed rainy days, which we are witnessing in Bangalore.

[ruzbehxyz]

Please do read this book if you are into weight loss or intend to loose weight.
It's a bestseller and available on Amazon India.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by Sebring

I'm 're-reading'

Fantastic idea. I also "re-read" some A+ books. A few are worth going through twice.

Bottle of Lies; a stunning expose on the Ranbaxy scandal

Thanks! Adding to Kindle wishlist.

@ ruzbehxyz: Would strongly recommend the LCHF, IF & Keto discussions on Team-BHP for weight loss.

[Saanil]

Book - Skin in the Game: Hidden asymmetries in daily life

Author: Nassim Nicholas Taleb



Taleb is the author of a series of books, collectively called the ‘Incerto’, which primarily focuses on understanding the unique aspects of risks and uncertainties in life. Taleb worked as a derivatives trader for many years and this experience enabled him to come up with a framework for making robust decisions in an uncertain environment. The central theme of all his books is to encourage people to make better decisions through a practical understanding of probabilities and heuristics.

Taleb explains his ideas and theories in the form of short stories with practical examples wherever possible. I did struggle at some places with his writing style due to many historical references but Taleb is usually succinct in making a point. Since there are a number of books published by him with overlapping themes, I would suggest you follow the chronological order (suggested below) in reading them. Professionals from fields like economics/finance/banking might relate to many themes explained in his books. If you do not belong to any of these fields, I would suggest you to pick the first book (highlighted below) and proceed to other books only if you like the subject.

Below is reading order I would suggest:

Book 1: Fooled by Randomness
Book 2: The Black Swan
Book 3: Antifragile
Book 4: Skin in the Game

[casnov]

Reading list of 2020.

Review of A Promised Land:
Man has a got sense of humour, but its bordering on being a hagiography;it also shows how powerless a president is in the context of domestic American politics; sometimes hypocrisy of American presidents come out; he tries to justify the hypocrisy by trying to make it appear as pragmatism. What stands out is whenever he is covering any topic, he gives out a brief history about it. He has covered his presidency only upto 2011 till Bin Laden is killed; so there are 5 more years to go;that will come in the next installment... Overall, its pretty good; nothing Great

[warrioraks]

The Wellness Sense - Om Swami

This book is a life changer. It’s the simplest and most practical piece of literature that I have ever read on health and well-being. This was my first book from the author but I am already a fan. Full 5 stars to it.

[warrioraks]

Just finished this book - Pandemonium: The Great Indian Banking Tragedy



It’s a gripping read on a supposedly boring topic. Loved how workings of the bank industry (specifically public sector banks and RBI) are laid bare.

The last quarter of the book does drag because the points do start to get repetitive. But overall I don’t regret buying it from a book-store at a much higher price than Amazon. The section where the author interviewed RBI governors is as candid as it can get.

Does take courage to write a book like this which has no names redacted at all. Would have rated it 4/5 but an extra .5 just for this fact alone. Final score - 4.5/5.

[ninjatalli]

Indian Icon - A Cult called Royal Enfield: 2.5 / 5
Author: Amrit Raj

Honestly, extremely disappointed with the author and his depth of investigation/analysis into the company, especially the last two decades.

Starts out on a strong front detailing out the history of Royal Enfield and the dealings/actions of the folks at the helm, including Vikram Lal and Siddhartha Lal (initial years). The book goes into depth into the workings till early 2000s - there is a clear view on what worked and what went wrong with proper analysis/details to support it.

It's the last decade and half where the author loses all logic - the book goes from factual points to almost folk-lorish kind of views, clearly hero-worshiping the younger Lal. The Himalayan gets a few chapters worth of reading but the Twins and the expansion of the organization into higher levels of motorcycling are dealt only across a few pages in the end.

Give it a miss. I sincerely hoped there would be a good sound biography of the company given the depth of content available in the world.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

Honestly, extremely disappointed with the author and his depth of investigation/analysis into the company, especially the last two decades.

Thanks for pointing out this release! We announced it on our news section after seeing your post.

I am a newbie in the 2-wheeler space and absolutely devour any automotive books, especially so if they are on India. Keeping the two points in mind, I enjoyed this book. My full review from the other thread:

Originally Posted by GTO

Big thanks to ninjatalli for the heads up ! Must say, this book was pretty poorly marketed. Even as an avid reader, I'd not heard about this book.

I am going to give the book a 4 / 5 rating and recommend it to BHPians. I love reading, especially automotive books whose launches are so rare (1 book a year average). And I absolutely devour reading any book / article on the Indian automotive scene.

Criticism of their bikes aside, there isn't a doubt that Royal Enfield & Bullet are among the most iconic brands to emerge from the Indian automotive scene. Just like a Jeep / Thar, they are selling not just a motorcycle, but an image + lifestyle + experience.

I enjoyed reading the book (am 90% done). I don't know much about the motorcycle industry, so I found the details on Royal Enfield's journey very insightful. I also really, really respect Siddhartha Lal for his business acumen, attitude & style. Read the book and you'll know that the brand survives today only because of a decision he took as a 26 year old! Furthermore, the book has some really juicy insider details on Rudratej Singh's reign at the company.

On the flip side, the author does come across as a fanboy of Siddhartha Lal and the bias is obvious. Still, the book has lots of dope for enthusiasts and I'd strongly recommend a read.