Best Sociology of Social Theory
From the winner of the 2017 Nobel Prize in Economics, Richard H. Thaler, and Cass R. Sunstein: a revelatory look at how we make decisions—for fans of Malcolm Gladwell’s Blink and Daniel Kahneman’s Thinking Fast and Slow. New York Times bestseller. Named a Best Book of the Year by The. Economist and the Financial Times Every day we make choices—about what to buy or eat, about financial investments or our children’s health and education, even about the causes we champion or the planet itself. A school cafeteria might try to nudge kids toward good diets by putting the healthiest foods at front. Thaler and Sunstein: Well, to name just a few: better investments for everyone, more savings for retirement, less obesity, more charitable giving, a cleaner planet, and an improved educational system. These features influence what you will choose to eat, so the person who decides how to display the food is the choice architect of the cafeteria. Good choice architecture can even improve the process of getting a divorce--or (a happier thought) getting married in the first place! Thaler and Sunstein: Those who are in position to shape our decisions can overreach or make mistakes, and freedom of choice is a safeguard to that. One of our goals in writing this book is to show that it is possible to help people make better choices and retain or even expand freedom. Amazon.com: You point out that most people spend more time picking out a new TV or audio device than they do choosing their health plan or retirement investment strategy? Research shows that in many situations people will just delay making a choice altogether if they can (say by not joining their 401(k) plan), or will just take the easy way out by selecting the default option, or the one that is being suggested by a pushy salesman. Since the cost of figuring out which one is best is so hard, an unscrupulous mortgage broker can easily push unsophisticated borrowers into taking a bad deal. Thaler and Sunstein: The human brain is amazing, but it evolved for specific purposes, such as avoiding predators and finding food. "In this utterly brilliant book, Thaler and Sunstein teach us how to steer people toward better health, sounder investments, and cleaner environments without depriving them of their inalienable right to make a mess of things if they want to. The inventor of behavioral economics and one of the nation''s best legal minds have produced the manifesto for a revolution in practice and policy. Thaler and Sunstein provide important lessons for structuring social policies so that people still have complete choice over their own actions, but are gently nudged to do what is in their own best interests. "Two University of Chicago professors sketch a new approach to public policy that takes into account the odd realities of human behavior, like the deep and unthinking tendency to conform. "A manifesto for using the recent behavioral research to help people, as well as government agencies, companies and charities, make better decisions. Just as surprising, it is fun to read, drawing on examples as far afield as urinals, 401(k) plans, organ donations, and marriage.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The book then goes on to recommend how society could be better if we followed some type of Paternal Libertarianism where the ones providing choses like Insurance companies or government services nudge persons to make smarter decisions while being transparent of all the options and not hiding any of them. Most of their suggestions and examples make sense as long as the ones nudging are 100% transparent."
"I wouldn't say this is something you will want to finish in a single sitting, its nice to read sections and reflect on them afterwards, you can better absorb the information and apply when you have had time to review it."
"That’s not where the people who actually make, spend, and invest money actually live and that gap between what the authors term Econs and Humans has historically compromised a lot of otherwise sound economic theory. The ideas in the book are built around what the authors call libertarian paternalism. We are constantly nudged without always being conscious of the nudging. Most of the nudges that Professors Thaler and Sunstein introduce are less invasive and more transparent than the commercial nudges we are already subject to. Things like the “status quo bias”, “pluralistic ignorance”, and “loss aversion” are all existing nudges common to the human psyche. Thaler and Sunstein just want to use these commonplace and natural biases to nudge people toward decisions that they probably want to make but frequently don’t, for reasons having little to do with the value of the intention. For example, in their discussion relating to retirement savings, one chapter is titled, “Naïve Investing”, and the authors suggest ways in which savers could be enticed into more astute strategies by way of theoretically painless nudges. My point is merely that the nudge itself introduces its own contextual bias, creating, in effect, a multi-level bias that the “choice architects,” in the vernacular of nudging, must be cognizant of if the nudging is to realize the original objective of positive paternalistic influence."
"Thaler explains the process and purpose of libertarian paternalism in a variety of contexts."
"It talked about how to structure choices to nudge people in the right direction concerning health, wealth, and happiness. Use incentives because these are powerful pushes for companies and churches to guide people in the right direction."
"In some ways, a bit of overlap from reading Thinking Fast and Slow - or more of a subset of Thinking Fast and Slow."
"Good suggestions."
Using colorful examples from the most important aspects of life, Thaler and Sunstein demonstrate how thoughtful “choice architecture” can be established to nudge us in beneficial directions without restricting freedom of choice. "[A] new book applying the lessons of social psychology and behavioral economics to everything from health care to climate maintenance. agree with economists who'd like to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by imposing carbon taxes or a cap-and-trade system, but they think people need extra guidance. "Two University of Chicago professors sketch a new approach to public policy that takes into account the odd realities of human behavior, like the deep and unthinking tendency to conform. "A manifesto for using the recent behavioral research to help people, as well as government agencies, companies and charities, make better decisions. The book isn't only humorous, it's loaded with good ideas that financial-service executives, policy makers, Wall Street mavens, and all savers can use. "An engaging and insightful tour through the evidence that most human beings don't make decisions in the way often characterized in elementary economics textbooks, along with a rich array of suggestions for enabling many of us to make better choices, both for ourselves and for society. "By a 'nudge,' Thaler and Sunstein mean a policy intervention into choice architecture that is easy and inexpensive to avoid and that alters people's behavior in a predictable way without forbidding any options or significantly changing an individual's economic incentives. Thaler and Sunstein stress that if 'incentives and nudges replace requirements and bans, government will be both smaller and more modest. an excellent rendition of how human beings view choices and make decisions. "—Gurumurthy Kalyanaram & Sunanda Muralidharan, International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Management Vol 5.4. It is a book that people interested in any aspect of public policy should read. It is a book that people interested in ideas about human freedom should read. " Nudge helps us understand our weaknesses, and suggests savvy ways to counter them. Just as surprising, it is fun to read, drawing on examples as far afield as urinals, 401(k) plans, organ donations, and marriage. "—Steven Levitt, Alvin Baum Professor of Economics, University of Chicago Graduate School of Business and co-author of Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything "In this utterly brilliant book, Thaler and Sunstein teach us how to steer people toward better health, sounder investments, and cleaner environments without depriving them of their inalienable right to make a mess of things if they want to. The inventor of behavioral economics and one of the nation's best legal minds have produced the manifesto for a revolution in practice and policy. "—Daniel Gilbert, professor of psychology, Harvard University, Author of Stumbling on Happiness. Thaler and Sunstein provide important lessons for structuring social policies so that people still have complete choice over their own actions, but are gently nudged to do what is in their own best interests. "—Michael Lewis, author of The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game and Liar's Poker.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The book then goes on to recommend how society could be better if we followed some type of Paternal Libertarianism where the ones providing choses like Insurance companies or government services nudge persons to make smarter decisions while being transparent of all the options and not hiding any of them. Most of their suggestions and examples make sense as long as the ones nudging are 100% transparent."
"I wouldn't say this is something you will want to finish in a single sitting, its nice to read sections and reflect on them afterwards, you can better absorb the information and apply when you have had time to review it."
"That’s not where the people who actually make, spend, and invest money actually live and that gap between what the authors term Econs and Humans has historically compromised a lot of otherwise sound economic theory. The ideas in the book are built around what the authors call libertarian paternalism. We are constantly nudged without always being conscious of the nudging. Most of the nudges that Professors Thaler and Sunstein introduce are less invasive and more transparent than the commercial nudges we are already subject to. Things like the “status quo bias”, “pluralistic ignorance”, and “loss aversion” are all existing nudges common to the human psyche. Thaler and Sunstein just want to use these commonplace and natural biases to nudge people toward decisions that they probably want to make but frequently don’t, for reasons having little to do with the value of the intention. For example, in their discussion relating to retirement savings, one chapter is titled, “Naïve Investing”, and the authors suggest ways in which savers could be enticed into more astute strategies by way of theoretically painless nudges. My point is merely that the nudge itself introduces its own contextual bias, creating, in effect, a multi-level bias that the “choice architects,” in the vernacular of nudging, must be cognizant of if the nudging is to realize the original objective of positive paternalistic influence."
"Thaler explains the process and purpose of libertarian paternalism in a variety of contexts."
"It talked about how to structure choices to nudge people in the right direction concerning health, wealth, and happiness. Use incentives because these are powerful pushes for companies and churches to guide people in the right direction."
"In some ways, a bit of overlap from reading Thinking Fast and Slow - or more of a subset of Thinking Fast and Slow."
"Good suggestions."
Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The book then goes on to recommend how society could be better if we followed some type of Paternal Libertarianism where the ones providing choses like Insurance companies or government services nudge persons to make smarter decisions while being transparent of all the options and not hiding any of them. Most of their suggestions and examples make sense as long as the ones nudging are 100% transparent."
"I wouldn't say this is something you will want to finish in a single sitting, its nice to read sections and reflect on them afterwards, you can better absorb the information and apply when you have had time to review it."
"That’s not where the people who actually make, spend, and invest money actually live and that gap between what the authors term Econs and Humans has historically compromised a lot of otherwise sound economic theory. The ideas in the book are built around what the authors call libertarian paternalism. We are constantly nudged without always being conscious of the nudging. Most of the nudges that Professors Thaler and Sunstein introduce are less invasive and more transparent than the commercial nudges we are already subject to. Things like the “status quo bias”, “pluralistic ignorance”, and “loss aversion” are all existing nudges common to the human psyche. Thaler and Sunstein just want to use these commonplace and natural biases to nudge people toward decisions that they probably want to make but frequently don’t, for reasons having little to do with the value of the intention. For example, in their discussion relating to retirement savings, one chapter is titled, “Naïve Investing”, and the authors suggest ways in which savers could be enticed into more astute strategies by way of theoretically painless nudges. My point is merely that the nudge itself introduces its own contextual bias, creating, in effect, a multi-level bias that the “choice architects,” in the vernacular of nudging, must be cognizant of if the nudging is to realize the original objective of positive paternalistic influence."
"Thaler explains the process and purpose of libertarian paternalism in a variety of contexts."
"It talked about how to structure choices to nudge people in the right direction concerning health, wealth, and happiness. Use incentives because these are powerful pushes for companies and churches to guide people in the right direction."
"In some ways, a bit of overlap from reading Thinking Fast and Slow - or more of a subset of Thinking Fast and Slow."
"Good suggestions."
Best Teen & Young Adult Sociology
A plea and a warning to citizens to examine the actual state of America after a century of emancipation.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Baldwin touches upon the use of religion to control, and the belief that the white man is the marker to which the black man should aspire, and that is still very clear in the world... As black men and women are told that their natural hair should be tamed to make them more appropriate for the work place, that the vernacular of their homes and families is somehow uneducated, even as they are surrounded by people who code-switch from a redneck southern dialect or a tough talking New York slang at home, to proper grammar in the workplace."
"He discusses a hidden message telling black people to settle for mediocrity rather than striving for excellence. Baldwin believes that black people need to know their history and where they came from so that there will be “no limit to where you can go.”. "…We, with love, shall force our brothers to see themselves as they are, to cease fleeing from reality and begin to change it.""
"I wish I had read James Baldwin when I was younger."
"Very important book for all Americans to read regardless of race."
"brilliant essays from James Baldwin--a must read."
"Great read."
"Great book!"
"Just finishing it."
Best Sociology of Death
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • PULITZER PRIZE FINALIST • This inspiring, exquisitely observed memoir finds hope and beauty in the face of insurmountable odds as an idealistic young neurosurgeon attempts to answer the question What makes a life worth living? At the age of thirty-six, on the verge of completing a decade’s worth of training as a neurosurgeon, Paul Kalanithi was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer. When Breath Becomes Air chronicles Kalanithi’s transformation from a naïve medical student “possessed,” as he wrote, “by the question of what, given that all organisms die, makes a virtuous and meaningful life” into a neurosurgeon at Stanford working in the brain, the most critical place for human identity, and finally into a patient and new father confronting his own mortality. I’ll go on.’” When Breath Becomes Air is an unforgettable, life-affirming reflection on the challenge of facing death and on the relationship between doctor and patient, from a brilliant writer who became both. And part comes from the way he conveys what happened to him—passionately working and striving, deferring gratification, waiting to live, learning to die—so well.” —Janet Maslin, The New York Times. The book brims with insightful reflections on mortality that are especially poignant coming from a trained physician familiar with what lies ahead.” — The Boston Globe. As he wrote to a friend: ‘It’s just tragic enough and just imaginable enough.’ And just important enough to be unmissable.” —Janet Maslin, The New York Times “Paul Kalanithi’s memoir, When Breath Becomes Air, written as he faced a terminal cancer diagnosis, is inherently sad. It is, despite its grim undertone, accidentally inspiring.” — The Washington Post “Paul Kalanithi’s posthumous memoir, When Breath Becomes Air, possesses the gravity and wisdom of an ancient Greek tragedy. [Kalanithi] is so likeable, so relatable, and so humble, that you become immersed in his world and forget where it’s all heading.” — USA Today “It’s [Kalanithi’s] unsentimental approach that makes When Breath Becomes Air so original—and so devastating. “Rattling, heartbreaking, and ultimately beautiful, the too-young Dr. Kalanithi’s memoir is proof that the dying are the ones who have the most to teach us about life.” —Atul Gawande “Thanks to When Breath Becomes Air, those of us who never met Paul Kalanithi will both mourn his death and benefit from his life. Kalanithi strives to define his dual role as physician and patient, and he weighs in on such topics as what makes life meaningful and how one determines what is most important when little time is left. This deeply moving memoir reveals how much can be achieved through service and gratitude when a life is courageously and resiliently lived.” — Publishers Weekly “A moving meditation on mortality by a gifted writer whose dual perspectives of physician and patient provide a singular clarity . Kalanithi describes, clearly and simply, and entirely without self-pity, his journey from innocent medical student to professionally detached and all-powerful neurosurgeon to helpless patient, dying from cancer. Every doctor should read this book—written by a member of our own tribe, it helps us understand and overcome the barriers we all erect between ourselves and our patients as soon as we are out of medical school.” —Henry Marsh, author of Do No Harm: Stories of Life, Death, and Brain Surgery “A tremendous book, crackling with life, animated by wonder and by the question of how we should live. Paul Kalanithi lived and died in the pursuit of excellence, and by this testimonial, he achieved it.” —Gavin Francis, author of Adventures in Human Being.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Ultimately there's not much triumph in it in the traditional sense but there is a dogged, quiet resilience and a frank earthiness that endures long after the last word appears. Dr. Kalanithi talks about his upbringing as the child of hardworking Indian immigrant parents and his tenacious and passionate espousal of medicine and literature. He speaks lovingly of his relationship with his remarkable wife - also a doctor - who he met in medical school and who played an outsized role in supporting him through everything he went through. He had a stunning and multifaceted career, studying biology and literature at Stanford, then history and philosophy of medicine at Cambridge, and finally neurosurgery at Yale. The mark of a man of letters is evident everywhere in the book, and quotes from Eliot, Beckett, Pope and Shakespeare make frequent appearances. Metaphors abound and the prose often soars: When describing how important it is to develop good surgical technique, he tells us that "Technical excellence was a moral requirement"; meanwhile, the overwhelming stress of late night shifts, hundred hour weeks and patients with acute trauma made him occasionally feel like he was "trapped in an endless jungle summer, wet with sweat, the rain of tears of the dying pouring down". The painful uncertainty which he documents - in particular the tyranny of statistics which makes it impossible to predict how a specific individual will react to cancer therapy - must sadly be familiar to anyone who has had experience with the disease. There are heartbreaking descriptions of how at one point the cancer seemed to have almost disappeared and how, after Dr. Kalanithi had again cautiously made plans for a hopeful future with his wife, it returned with a vengeance and he had to finally stop working."
"He says this, “The secret is to know that the deck is stacked, that you will lose, that your hands or judgment will slip, and yet still struggle to win …You can’t ever reach perfection, but you can believe in an asymptote toward which are ceaselessly striving. In the foreword by fellow doctor and writer Abraham Verghese, that doctor writes, “He (Paul) wasn’t writing about anything—he was writing about time and what it meant to him now, in the context of his illness.” And in the afterword by his wife Lucy, the meaning of that time becomes even clearer."
"The pressure to be brave when scared, the pressure to do something great instead of just being, the pressure to conform to someone else's idea of what dying well looks like."
"knowing his terminal condition, had the fortitude & patience to share such a personal. experience almost to the end of his life."
Best Sociology of Rural Areas
From a former marine and Yale Law School graduate, a powerful account of growing up in a poor Rust Belt town that offers a broader, probing look at the struggles of America’s white working class. They raised a middle-class family, and eventually their grandchild (the author) would graduate from Yale Law School, a conventional marker of their success in achieving generational upward mobility. Vance’s grandparents, aunt, uncle, sister, and, most of all, his mother, struggled profoundly with the demands of their new middle-class life, and were never able to fully escape the legacy of abuse, alcoholism, poverty, and trauma so characteristic of their part of America. “[A] compassionate, discerning sociological analysis…Combining thoughtful inquiry with firsthand experience, Mr. Vance has inadvertently provided a civilized reference guide for an uncivilized election, and he’s done so in a vocabulary intelligible to both Democrats and Republicans. [Vance] offers a compelling explanation for why it’s so hard for someone who grew up the way he did to make it…a riveting book.” ( Wall Street Journal ). “[ Hillbilly Elegy ] couldn’t have been better timed...a harrowing portrait of much that has gone wrong in America over the past two generations...an honest look at the dysfunction that afflicts too many working-class Americans.” ( National Review ). Vance’s memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy”, offers a starkly honest look at what that shattering of faith feels like for a family who lived through it.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Drugs, crime, jail time, abusive interactions without any knowledge of other forms of interaction, children growing up in a wild mix of stoned mother care, foster care, and care by temporary "boyfriends," and in general, an image of life on the edge of survival where even the heroes are distinctly flawed for lack of knowledge and experience of any other way of living. Second, the author's growing realization, fully present by the end of the work, that while individuals do not have total control over the shapes of their lives, their choices do in fact matter—that even if one can't direct one's life like a film, one does always have the at least the input into life that comes from being free to make choices, every day, and in every situation. I hate to fall into self-analysis and virtue-signaling behavior in a public review, but in this case I feel compelled to say that the author really did leave with me a renewed motivation to make more of my life every day, to respect and consider the choices that confront me much more carefully, and to seize moments of opportunity with aplomb when they present themselves."
"I never heard of the author until I saw him on Morning Joe a few days ago but I looked him up and read several articles he wrote for various publications so I bought his book. He suggests that tribalism, mistrust of outsiders and "elites," violence and irresponsibility among family members, parents without ethics and a sense of responsibility, terrible work ethics, and an us-against-them mentality is dooming the people who live that way to becoming poorer, more addicted, and more marginalized."
"I grew up without running water in Boone County, WV, and wound up with a degree from Harvard Law School."
"I escaped inner city Baltimore (see The Wire) due to luck, the ability to do well in school and a few good teachers.Instead of trying to describe my early life to my family and friends, I will give them this book."
Best Sociology of Class
From a former marine and Yale Law School graduate, a powerful account of growing up in a poor Rust Belt town that offers a broader, probing look at the struggles of America’s white working class. They raised a middle-class family, and eventually their grandchild (the author) would graduate from Yale Law School, a conventional marker of their success in achieving generational upward mobility. Vance’s grandparents, aunt, uncle, sister, and, most of all, his mother, struggled profoundly with the demands of their new middle-class life, and were never able to fully escape the legacy of abuse, alcoholism, poverty, and trauma so characteristic of their part of America. “[A] compassionate, discerning sociological analysis…Combining thoughtful inquiry with firsthand experience, Mr. Vance has inadvertently provided a civilized reference guide for an uncivilized election, and he’s done so in a vocabulary intelligible to both Democrats and Republicans. [Vance] offers a compelling explanation for why it’s so hard for someone who grew up the way he did to make it…a riveting book.” ( Wall Street Journal ). “[ Hillbilly Elegy ] couldn’t have been better timed...a harrowing portrait of much that has gone wrong in America over the past two generations...an honest look at the dysfunction that afflicts too many working-class Americans.” ( National Review ). Vance’s memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy”, offers a starkly honest look at what that shattering of faith feels like for a family who lived through it.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Drugs, crime, jail time, abusive interactions without any knowledge of other forms of interaction, children growing up in a wild mix of stoned mother care, foster care, and care by temporary "boyfriends," and in general, an image of life on the edge of survival where even the heroes are distinctly flawed for lack of knowledge and experience of any other way of living. Second, the author's growing realization, fully present by the end of the work, that while individuals do not have total control over the shapes of their lives, their choices do in fact matter—that even if one can't direct one's life like a film, one does always have the at least the input into life that comes from being free to make choices, every day, and in every situation. I hate to fall into self-analysis and virtue-signaling behavior in a public review, but in this case I feel compelled to say that the author really did leave with me a renewed motivation to make more of my life every day, to respect and consider the choices that confront me much more carefully, and to seize moments of opportunity with aplomb when they present themselves."
"I never heard of the author until I saw him on Morning Joe a few days ago but I looked him up and read several articles he wrote for various publications so I bought his book. He suggests that tribalism, mistrust of outsiders and "elites," violence and irresponsibility among family members, parents without ethics and a sense of responsibility, terrible work ethics, and an us-against-them mentality is dooming the people who live that way to becoming poorer, more addicted, and more marginalized."
"I grew up without running water in Boone County, WV, and wound up with a degree from Harvard Law School."
"I escaped inner city Baltimore (see The Wire) due to luck, the ability to do well in school and a few good teachers.Instead of trying to describe my early life to my family and friends, I will give them this book."
Best Sociology of Abuse
Taking the town as a case study for a crime that is sadly prevalent throughout the nation, Krakauer documents the experiences of five victims: their fear and self-doubt in the aftermath; the skepticism directed at them by police, prosecutors, and the public; their bravery in pushing forward and what it cost them. he sets the story firmly in the context of social history.” — The Boston Globe. Meticulously reported, fascinating and deeply disturbing.” — USA Today. “Jon Krakauer began his career as an author of taut, finely reported outdoor adventures; seven books later, he emerges as the conscience of a nation.” — The Christian Science Monitor. “ Missoula will be a touchstone of any future correction to the rape culture we live in.” — Minneapolis Star Tribune. “Jon Krakauer began his career as an author of taut, finely reported outdoor adventures; seven books later, he emerges as the conscience of a nation. Investigative reporters—and Krakauer is one of the craft’s finest practitioners, diligent, dogged, and artful—are nothing so much as trial attorneys with pens rather than costly silk ties.” — The Christian Science Monitor. By probing the specific, Krakauer illuminates upsetting generalities. Krakauer—a journalist who is also a compelling writer—artfully keeps the books from becoming a compendium of facts. It’s an important, difficult and timely subject.” — USA Today. Clear and dispassionate, offering level-headed, in-depth reportage.” — Chicago Tribune. Krakauer skillfully strengthens his sources’ recollections without taking away their agency.” — Buzzfeed. “A devastating exposé of colleges and local law enforcement. A substantive deep dive into the morass of campus sex crimes, where the victim is too often treated like the accused.” — Entertainment Weekly. Krakauer has done a great service by taking on this subject.” — Newsweek. “Krakauer exposes the cavalier attitude of police, prosecutors and football fans toward victims of acquaintance rape in the Montana town full of fanatics for the University of Montana football team.” — The Denver Post. “A clear and undeniable picture of a broken system. Missoula stands as both a reminder of the forces arrayed against women raising their voices, and of the tremendous power of the telling of their stories.” — The Toronto Star. “Krakauer’s evocative reporting, honed to a fine edge of anger, vividly conveys the ordeal of victims and their ongoing psychological dislocations. A hard-hitting true-crime exposé that looks underneath the he-said-she-said to get at the sexist assumptions that help cover up and enable these crimes.” — Publishers Weekly (starred).
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This is a well written book the weaves through multiple tales of multiple women who have suffered violent sexual acts and also clearly illustrates the problems in prosecuting these acts."
"Tragic description of what is probably going on at many colleges and universities."
"changeling read - complex issue, like his other nonfiction writings - good description, but the problem likelt is still going on."
"An eye opening account of what is happening on our college campuses today."
"Everyone should read this book."
"Krakauer is such a skilled documentarian!"
"Lots of procedural, courtroom stories but Krakauer is also brilliant at telling the story of what really happened as well."
"Krakauer standard with deep investigative research to expose facts ignored by the regional bias."
Best Sociology of Urban Areas
Now, Brandon is back with the Humans of New York book that his loyal followers have been waiting for: Humans of New York: Stories .
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"~~~~~~~~~It appears Amazon posted my review under both books Humans of New York and HONY Stories. If you are deciding on whether or not to buy the book, consider the following, which Brandon posted on the HONY facebook page: "I want to take a quick opportunity to remind everyone that HONY is advertisement free and almost entirely financed by book sales. By purchasing a book, you can help HONY continue to grow in a way that remains focused on telling people’s stories--- and nothing else."
"I've purchased all three Humans of New York books and have loved them all, but in Humans of New York - Stories, it all comes together. Even something went unspeakably wrong and against all odds the book was garbage (it isn't) you STILL should buy it, if for nothing more than to cast a vote of support for the JOY, LOVE, and EMPATHY that HONY provides."
"In 2013, I bought several copies of Brandon Stanton's first Humans of New York book as gifts for family and friends."
"After reading the instagram account of HONY and finding it funny, moving, heart-rending, and educational, when I saw this book on sale for $10, I might have strained something trying to buy it so quickly."
"It makes a great coffee table book and everybody that has come over has picked this up and started reading it."
"An amazing collection of photos and personal stories."
"I follow the Facebook page but there's something about holding a tangible book and reading through all the stories in 2 nights that make it better."
"Love this book."
Best Sociology of Race Relations
Hailed by Toni Morrison as “required reading,” a bold and personal literary exploration of America’s racial history by “the single best writer on the subject of race in the United States” ( The New York Observer ) #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER | NATIONAL BOOK AWARD WINNER | NAACP IMAGE AWARD WINNER | PULITZER PRIZE FINALIST | NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD FINALIST | NAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The New York Times Book Review • O: The Oprah Magazine • The Washington Post • People •. Entertainment Weekly •. Vogue • Los Angeles Times • San Francisco Chronicle • Chicago Tribune • New York • Newsday • Library Journal • Publishers Weekly In a profound work that pivots from the biggest questions about American history and ideals to the most intimate concerns of a father for his son, Ta-Nehisi Coates offers a powerful new framework for understanding our nation’s history and current crisis. Americans have built an empire on the idea of “race,” a falsehood that damages us all but falls most heavily on the bodies of black women and men—bodies exploited through slavery and segregation, and, today, threatened, locked up, and murdered out of all proportion. Between the World and Me is Ta-Nehisi Coates’s attempt to answer these questions in a letter to his adolescent son. Coates shares with his son—and readers—the story of his awakening to the truth about his place in the world through a series of revelatory experiences, from Howard University to Civil War battlefields, from the South Side of Chicago to Paris, from his childhood home to the living rooms of mothers whose children’s lives were taken as American plunder. Beautifully woven from personal narrative, reimagined history, and fresh, emotionally charged reportage, Between the World and Me clearly illuminates the past, bracingly confronts our present, and offers a transcendent vision for a way forward. in the tradition of James Baldwin with echoes of Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man . In this short memoir, the Atlantic writer explains that the tragic examples of Michael Brown, Trayvon Martin, and those killed in South Carolina are the results of a systematically constructed and maintained assault to black people—a structure that includes slavery, mass incarceration, and police brutality as part of its foundation.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This book came recommended by a quasi-stranger, not for it's content but for its structure: letters from a father to a son. After ordering it, I heard the author on NPR - without knowing it was the author of the book, mind you - and I thought "wow, this guy is really interesting, provocative, well-spoken, intellectually sound, and speaks from a world that I can only see from afar." At times I felt compelled to put the book down, that it was just conjuring up too much weight of history that I wanted to put back out of sight. Even those outside of the USA will benefit from it, as it will certainly illuminate the tension and schizophrenia and contradictions and rewritten history of our country."
"So I understand the scorn directed at this book by many who dismiss it as divisive and simplistic in its assessment of the black experience in America. I felt the anger he feels at people who believe that they are white dismissing that experience as so many sour grapes. I felt the hypocrisy of being told not to wear hoodies or play loud music for fear of someone breaking your body. It's not a solution to our race problems or an accurate assessment of the progress of America as a nation."
"For those who realize that they MUST be faced, no matter how painful we find them, Coates provides a remarkable first step with this compelling, poetic, and sometimes heartbreaking expressionistic book. Empathy and a desire to understand that which we haven't personally experienced but that we know are pernicious facts of modern Anerican life are key to the changes we must make. As an upper-middle class white woman, I've lived through very few of the events and feelings Coates describes in "Between the World and Me.""
Best Sociology of Marriage & Family
“This memoir isn’t really about Glennon rebuilding her relationship with her husband; it is about Glennon rebuilding her relationship with herself. A memoir of betrayal and self-discovery by bestselling author Glennon Doyle, Love Warrior is a gorgeous and inspiring account of how we are all born to be warriors: strong, powerful, and brave; able to confront the pain and claim the love that exists for us all. ― New York Times Book Review "An incredible, dark, poignant, vulnerable personal account about surviving rock bottom and finding a better life. It’s about one woman letting go of the gendered messages she’s been surrounded by her entire life, and communing with her fullest, most authentic self. ― Elizabeth Gilbert, New York Times bestselling author of Big Magic and Eat Pray Love. "This is a book about what it means to be human ― to wrestle with love, hurt, addiction, vulnerability, intimacy, and grace. ― Brené Brown, New York Times bestselling author of Rising Strong and Daring Greatly. Moving and brilliant and funny and shocking and heartbreaking and inspiring, Love Warrior raises provocative questions about just what is possible for a person, a marriage, a family, a life. At the heart of this story is the insistence that we don't have to settle ― we can explore our shadows, and we're not just going to survive it, but we're going to come out the other side a whole new person with new love, new hope, new strength, and maybe even a new marriage. This is a big, stunning, buoyant, honest, raw glimpse into the life of an astonishing woman, but it is also a punch in the face to anyone anywhere who believes that this is just how it is and it's not going to get any better." Glennon and Craig have invited us so far into the messy, beautiful, difficult insides of their hearts and lives, and what we find there is profoundly inspiring. Now she lays herself bare once again in Love Warrior , chronicling her struggles and the depths of her resilience in the darkest of times. Love Warrior presents an intense and absorbing narrative while reaching for something bigger and more quixotic, the mystery of intimacy itself."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I read the book in under 24 hours (including time I really should have been sleeping). though much less sprinkled with humor to lighten things up (not surprisingly, given what she's covering here). for me, it crossed a line where I ultimately felt I had intruded too much into what should have remained private between them. Then the book ends with it sounding like they've reconciled and forged a strong marriage through their intense efforts. They'll get no judgment on the divorce from me, but it makes me feel even more awkward having read the book, like this is a chapter in their lives that I should not be privy to in such great detail."
"Her ability to reach in and paste thought sticky notes on a virtual wall (book)....and organize in her little compartimental boxes is neat and tidy. Life.....is a true medium of flavors and colors and tastes......and putting them together in an art form, appealing and interesting with all their layers is a gift."
"Glenn enforces the raider to be a voyeur into a place were too many young girls get static."
"At times it was okay but a lot of telling and no show."
"I chose five stars because I feel like it was real, vulnerable, loving and kind."
"But as someone who has been through marriage troubles in the past, I can relate."
"I left her sometime during the yoga section and left without knowing whether or not she and her husband ever had sex again or ever decided to give it a real go again -- and I feel sorta bad about that, as, no doubt, much went into this life and this book -- I just found the mountain of details wore me down too much to care. I wish her well, however it went, and congratulate her on both the success of her life and, is seems, this book."
"Girl get pregnant."
Best Sociological Study of Medicine
After losing seven members of his family to cancer over the course of a decade, Ty set out on a global quest to learn as much as he possibly could about cancer treatments and the medical industry that surrounds the disease. The Truth about Cancer delves into the history of medicine—all the way back to Hippocrates’s credo of “do no harm”—as well as cutting-edge research showing the efficacy of dozens of unconventional cancer treatments that are helping patients around the globe. The little-known wisdom found in this book can help end human suffering across the globe while saving people from the ravages of the failed cancer industry.”. “Ty Bollinger provides patients, scientists, and health care professionals with an excellent explanation of why our current cancer model is flawed, how cancer can be prevented, and offers a more complete ‘menu’ of treatment options that are far more favorable on a risk-to-benefit-to-cost ratio when compared to most standard oncology protocols. In this groundbreaking book, Ty Bollinger sheds light on the plethora of natural ways to promote immunity, fuel the body, and stifle cancer. His exploration into the politics of cancer is a remarkably brave look at a desperate situation that affects millions of people worldwide. He doesn’t just take the medical view; he engages in a massive historical sweep, through centuries of manipulation and scientific abuse, to explain how we have got to where we are with the Big C (cancer). Ty Bollinger’s new book is a tell-all story of how we get cancer, how it is promoted by the pharmaceutical industry and perpetuated by the ‘standard of care’ in the medical community. — Ben Johnson, M.D., D.O., N.M.D., best-selling co-author of The Healing Code and author of The Secret of Health: Breast Wisdom and No Ma’am-ogram!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This book has been life changing for my family and myself. After phase 1, I traveled to speak with other doctors and was given the book and docu-series THE TRUTH ABOUT CANCER. It was the best book I have ever read on the subject (and I have read a lot to try to understand and prevent cancer.)."
"I highly recommend this alternative "look" at cancer care."
"I was fairly disinterested until I had a cancer diagnosis which was false and it made me take my health into my own control and not believe ALL we are told by media and doctors alike. The reason that word is not getting around quicker is that most folks think you are a little odd when you mention that there are many Cancer cures across the world and often friends and family just distance themselves from talking about the subject which is upsetting and frustrating - just get the book and look forward to not being so scared of Cancer and other illnesses which plague society."
"He helped save my life because I wouldnt have known about thermograms (vs mammograms), which lead me to a high risk cancer diagnosis that otherwise wouldn't have been seen until it was too late."
"Therefore, when I discovered a bump in my boob at the age of 64, which was confirmed by the mammogram (Ygggg) and I was frightened into surgery within a few days - the slash part. Recovering after the op, I was lying in bed googling "real hair wigs" on my i-pad, thinking that that was the next step. Under pressure, I entered the oncology centre in Durban, South Africa, to be met with the sight of yellow shuffling corpses feeding their limp bodies with coca cola, chips and suggary doughnuts from the vending machine in the centre. As I am typing this, our very own Tim Noakes has just been found guilty by the SA Medical Association of advising a mother to wean her baby onto a low carbohydrate, high fat diet."