Tijs Teulings 🦑

@tijs.org 🦋 • Joined 7 days ago

iOS developer at DPG Media, and making some indie apps like @kilowattcharging.com @flexiblemovement.com @dropanchor.app Based in The Hague, NL #iosdev #bouldering

Library

Reviews

October: The Story of the Russian Revolutionby China Miéville(4 ⭐)

The most entertaining way to read up on the Russian revolution i'm sure.

Hieroglyph: Stories and Visions for a Better Futureby Ed Finn(3 ⭐)

Very much a mixed bag with even the bigger name writers underperforming. Mostly a bit disappointed that the uplifting big ideas this is supposed to cover never seem to go much beyond gadgets in space.

Tentacleby Rita Indiana(4 ⭐)

This is a tough one to review! I think it’s worth your time simply because it’s so different from other books in the genre (which genre?). I’ve never read a book set in the Dominican Republic before, nor has this particular type of voodoo featured heavily in anything I’ve read. Also; simultaneously experiencing the lives of people in different era’s was a novel concept to me. This was all definitely confusing at times but also interesting for sure.

Intuitive Archery - The art of not standing in your own wayby Manfred Herrmann(3 ⭐)

It’s not exactly an inspiring read. But it’s a reasonably practical book. Some good tips and some new subjects to dive into that I found interesting enough at least.

The Robert C. Martin Clean Code Collectionby Robert C. Martin(3 ⭐)

Should be read as historical lore not as golden rules. With that taken into account these are two quite readable books that will contain some good pointers on how to level up your craft.

The Doors of Edenby Adrian Tchaikovsky(5 ⭐)

Some next level world building here. Truly original setup and ideas. And just a very enjoyable read. Looking forward to read more from this author.

Archery: A walk through its historyby Jorge J. López Bordón(3 ⭐)

Really wanted to like this one. And I did enjoy the big stories and odd tidbits of specific bows making the difference in such and such battle. But the book suffers a bit from its lack of overall story or structure. It’s a collection of articles not so much a book. Also the translation is just horrible with composite consistently being translated as compound and other errors. Just a better translation would help a lot on readability.

Gnomonby Nick Harkaway(5 ⭐)

Very dense. Very deep. Halfway through it seems to derail into madness, but if you stick with it it all fits together in the end.

The Lonely Century: How to Restore Human Connection in a World That's Pulling Apartby Noreena Hertz(4 ⭐)

<div>Covering large swaths of territory this is a very interesting take on the loneliness problem and its causes and effects. Seems like an important book to read if your in any position of power and would like to something good. But also for us normal folks just trying to figure out why shit is happening in the world right now. Some of the data seems a bit cherry picked to make a point but overall it seems solid and well researched.</div>

Nophek Glossby Essa Hansen(4 ⭐)

For some reason I started with Azura Ghost not having noticed it was a sequel after being too far in. Between the two I thing part two is a bit more interesting. Nophek Gloss is a bit more a predictable SF story but still highly entertaining. You’ll like this, and if you did you’ll love the next one is what I’m saying.

The ART of BAREBOW Shooting: and its mental gameby Martin Godio(4 ⭐)

Quite enjoyed this one. Extremely practical book on how to train well and what works and why. Especially liked the chapters on process and aiming. Learned a lot.

Aphantasia: Experiences, Perceptions, and Insightsby Alan Kendle(2 ⭐)

Absolutely fascinating topic, and some real nuggets in the interviews that form the basis of this book. But.. the books setup where each chapter is simply a statement, two paragraphs of introduction, and then a whole bunch of quotes from the interviews does not work for me. I really wish the interviews would instead be turned into a coherent narrative. In its current form it’s just very tiresome and repetitive to read.

Arbitrary Stupid Goalby Tamara Shopsin(3 ⭐)

Interesting enough but at some point I’d hear enough quirky New York anecdotes. Abandoned at about half way.

Game Programming Patternsby Robert Nystrom(4 ⭐)

Although not directly relevant to my day job I enjoyed this quite a bit. It’s basically a more readable version of the gang of four original. Fun read, nice examples. I do mostly UI &amp; library dev these days where a lot of these patterns will look familiar.

Archery Fitness: Physical Training For The Modern Archerby Ashley Kalym(4 ⭐)

Good overview of relevant exercises. Nothing more, nothing less.

The Making of Karatekaby Jordan Mechner(4 ⭐)

This hits all the Ready Player One like nostalgia pleasure points for me only with interesting cultural references instead. Also it's not about a dystopia but a kid growing up and making an indie game hit. Straight up the guys diary though so that format might put some people off.

The Making of Prince of Persiaby Jordan Mechner(4 ⭐)

I did not enjoy this book as much as the first as it seemed a bit too self conscious and less about the process. The author has less too lose, or to prove, at this point making the whole thing a bit less interesting. Still thought this was a good read though especially if you recognize the ‘struggle’ of having to figure out what you actually want of life.