Liam

This book focuses on four positive aspects of Israeli society and uses them as examples of Israeli exceptionalism. The author writes this book for an American audience and with a masterful use of tone and flow, making it an easy and accessible read for me. I appreciated Dan Senor's insight into Israeli society and have come to respect and take an interest in his claims of a tightly-knit social society based on civic service working for a greater purpose. I did not appreciate the explicit exclusion of Haredim and Arabic cultural groups from being considered part of Israeli society. I found it troubling that the book provided an un-nuanced perspective of the harm produced by the Israeli military against Palestine. I found it disheartening to hear the celebration of settler colonialism against Palestinians. I would recommend this book as an interesting read on the society of secular Israeli Jews with the caveat of it taking pride in militarism and populism.

This book is a lovely first introduction for me to the topic of penal systems. Hindpal Singh Bhui provides insights into the goals of prisons, the methods they use to achieve their goals, and the outcomes they produce. This short, digestible read has left me hungry to explore the questions to the answers the author has posed.

I did not finish this book at the 20% mark due to the author's pompous espousal of her beliefs and constant dismissals of a straw-manned opposing view. Lenore Skenazy calls for a rejection of fear rooted in conjecture through the use of conjecture.

Raw Dog is a delightfully crude travel memoir that recounts a journey around the United States filled with the overconsumption of hot dogs, heartbreak, and a class-conscious history of urban development, meat packing, and national identity.

A great guide to leading a revolution geared toward new leaders organizing members of the dominant social groups.

This book is a stellar history of water policy through top-down and “great men” lenses, delivered in a dense, drawn-out format.

Cameron Blevins has created a masterpiece with this blend of niche history and spatial analysis. The use of spatial data to drive an investigation into the functions of the early post office allows for a top-down perspective on how the institution was able to operate so effectively. Paper Trails also provides an excellent insight into the day-to-day lives of settlers and how their interactions were shaped by this institution. I appreciated the nuanced look at how this system effectively encouraged settler colonialism and the destruction of indigenous peoples. This is an essential book on human geography in my library and a wonderful introduction to the field of spatial analysis.

A stunning re-examination of the purpose of medicine. This book is excellent at questioning whether the treatment processes are antithetical to the patient's values.