literature
Geek literature from the New York Times or the recesses of online. Our favorite stories showcase geeks.
Book Review: "The Knot of Vipers" by François Mauriac
I'm not going to lie, more than often it is a title that draws me to a book and this one was quite intriguing because it didn't give anything away. The only thing I could figure out is that it wasn't going to be a romantic comedy or something along those lines. The Knot of Vipers is François Mauriac's novel written in the style of a confession, about a family falling apart and the members like 'vipers'. They deceive, they are poison to each other, they are hypocritical and selfish. All I can say is that this psychologically twisted novel was not quite what I was expecting but it was amazing nevertheless.
By Annie Kapur5 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Ageless" by Andrew Steele
Who loves cheap books they can read on their phone? I do. This book wasn't too expensive when I found it and well, I'm not going to lie when I say I'm not overtly interested in biology. HOWEVER, I am also aware that this book is an important read and so, I wanted to get in there. What happens when we have to confront ageing and all of the horrors that come with it? Well, if you're like me you normally turn to the fact that you don't feel like you're too old but you also have to admit that there are things you simply can't do anymore - things you used to do about ten or fifteen years' ago. Andrew Steele gets into the argument about why we should treat this concept, where our bodies work against us, rather than just looking at diseases we can see straight away. How do we cure ageing? Oh, and why should we?
By Annie Kapur5 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Auschwitz: A Doctor's Eyewitness Account" by Miklós Nyiszli
There's something really upsetting, something really emotional, about reading books regarding the experiences of those at the concentration camps during the Second World War. But this book is something else entirely. Miklós Nyiszli writes with such incredible amounts of this sadness, this incredibly dark emotion that we cannot help to be drawn into the book, no matter how disgusting and horrifying the subject matter. The man worked for and with the infamous Dr Mengele and was subjected to some gruesome sights. The even more horrific thing though was that the prisoners of the camp were obviously looking at him, recognising him and knowing that he too, was Jewish.
By Annie Kapur5 months ago in Geeks
Toy Story 5: Pixar’s Beloved Franchise Returns with New Adventures and Familiar Hearts
After years of speculation, Pixar has officially confirmed that Toy Story 5 is in development — marking the return of one of the most iconic animated franchises in cinematic history. Following the emotional farewell of Toy Story 4, fans wondered if Woody, Buzz Lightyear, and their friends had truly said goodbye. Now, it seems there’s still one more story to tell.
By KAMRAN AHMAD5 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "From Here to the Great Unknown" by Lisa Marie Presley and Riley Keough
There are few things more embarrassing than having such a book covering the experiences of living with Elvis Presley on the day it came out and not reading it until *checks notes* yesterday. Basically, it's been little over a year since it's release. I'm not going to lie, I bought it on my phone and kind of forgot it was there until now and well, it isn't too long but it is definitely heartbreaking and beautiful. There are very few autobiographies I have enjoyed reading in my time, often being very choosy about which ones I spend my time with but I have to say, I can't believe I waited so long to read this one - it's fantastic.
By Annie Kapur5 months ago in Geeks
Blood on the Covers
The last entry in our series, Murder in the Cheap Seats, saw us prowling around in back alleys exploring crime and detective stories. Hardened detectives chasing crooks, killers, and femme fatales were a common trend and were very popular. Not all pulp stories, however, worked the streets. Occasionally, these tales would venture into darker places, graveyards, crypts, and other shadowy locations where horrors lurked.
By Greg Seebregts5 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Confessions of Felix Krull, Confidence Man" by Thomas Mann
“That's what people are like: they want talent, which is inherently peculiar, yet they absolutely don't want the peculiarities connected to it - perhaps necessarily bound up with it - which they refuse to understand or forgive.” - "Confessions of Felix Krull, Confidence Man" by Thomas Mann
By Annie Kapur5 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "The Greatest Minds and Ideas of All Time" by Will Durant
The 'Great Man' theory is a theory I don't believe in by any degree. For those of you who don't know what that is, it is basically where you state that these great men who have changed history have done so through them having some pre-conceived attributes and therefore, they have the ability and the responsibility to change the world for the better. Tolstoy's novels basically disprove the whole theory as do the novels of Dostoevsky and the fact that Hitler existed. Will Durant's book The Greatest Minds and Ideas of All Time may not limit itself to Western history, but it definitely only makes tokens of the Eastern world. I'm not sure how to put this lightly so I'm just going to say it: there's something deeply wrong with how these people have been chosen. Many of them have been selected on the basis of the subjectivity of 'changing the world' rather than actually enduring and changing anything at all. Some of them I agree with, but there are plenty that are perfectly replaceable as we will see.
By Annie Kapur5 months ago in Geeks
Wicked: for Good
I knew this would happen, first of all and most OBVIOUSLY... it's not "wicked for good" it's "Wicked: for Good" punctuation means something. Secondly, what makes Elphaba actually Wicked? What does she DO that is actually evil? Tell me you don't know what you're talking about even harder because you clearly did not even google search the thing you are talking about at all, this is so stupid
By Raine Fielder5 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Ending Up" by Kingsley Amis
About two years' ago, I thought I would try out a random novel by Kingsley Amis called The Old Devils and I was completely sold. Finally, a Kingsley Amis novel I could actually enjoy! After this, I definitely became more confident with my reading of this author because I'm not going to lie - I have read many more books by his son. I picked up a short book called Ending Up from a used bookstore recently and well, it's time to really get stuck in. I was surprised. I enjoyed it, and it was pretty much over before it even began - so you can imagine how short it was.
By Annie Kapur5 months ago in Geeks
The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann
Thomas Mann’s The Magic Mountain (Der Zauberberg) was published in 1924 after more than a decade of writing and revision. The original thought was to write a short story in 1912. It was inspired by Mann’s visit to a Swiss tuberculosis sanatorium where his wife was recovering, and the novel grew into a philosophical and symbolic epic, exploring themes of: time, illness, and the intellectual and ideological conflicts of pre-World War I Europe.
By Annie Kapur5 months ago in Geeks
