What I've been reading (Winter 2017)

[@tibees]

I really need to read Turtles All The Way Down, at this stage i'm ashamed I haven't read it yet haha

[@kieranmclaughlin4014]

Also loving the Real Engineering top!

[@BernardoBlue]

I felt the same way about Turtles. I ended reading it and I felt like... I'd gained something reading it. It's a rare feeling, which you'll only get when reading great books, but it's a hard one to describe. Kinda like the book added depth to who you are. About the mixed reviews, it was to be expected. Young adult fiction is always heavily criticized nowadays due to it being mainstream and because there are so many YA books out there, the whole genre is now heavily frowned upon. Screw the reviews, I liked Turtles a lot and that's what matters to me.

[@stevieinselby]

You'll always be a prince to us, Simon! And as if I wasn't already a little bit in love with you, to find out you are a John Green fan and that you also hear him speaking when you read the books is just too much ;-)

[@youtubecommoner]

You are absolutely brilliant. I like how honest you were about your reading experience and the materials you have been exposed to. I will definitely look into the Underground RailRoad even though I knew quite a bit about it from a historical point of view. All the books you talked about are in my TBR! Thanks mate

[@FreedominThought]

Thanks for the review Simon! I've actually started reading The Metamorphosis by Kafka based on your previous review. I'm thinking about adding the Newton biography to my list as well. I loved TFIOS but haven't finished TATWD yet. I love the parts about mental illness but I'm finding the whole missing father storyline quite boring.

[@SimonClark]

Thank you! Yeah I actually trimmed down my review of TATWD quite a bit to keep the video moving - in the original cut I mention this criticism. I think I don't mind it as really the book isn't /about/ the missing father storyline, it's a book about Aza's mental health. So it's definitely a weak part of the book, but I can understand why it was left weak rather than distractingly interesting (!).

[@FreedominThought]

Yeah that's true, I definitely have to finish it up before making any judgments. Looking forward to your future vids!

[@Chloe-db6cw]

Yay, so nice to see a new book video! An enjoyable watch as always. I remember reading your thoughts on The Underground Railroad on goodreads a while ago and thinking I needed to keep my eye out for it, so this is another reminder... You’ve also piqued my interest in picking up Turtles All The Way Down. I’ve never read a John Green book for the reasons you stated - YA isn’t my cup of tea in general. Though I watched TFIOS film for the first time this week and bawled my eyes out for the last half-hour, which made me consider picking up the source material as it were, so perhaps I’ll give both a go. Hope the new year is treating you well and you read many great books :)

[@Mark_Cadden]

I loved Turtles. It helped me through a weird time when I needed to understand mental illness a bit more and realize things aren’t about me as much as I want them to be and helped me understand someone close to me a lot better. For that, I agree, I thought it was very important.

[@teodoras9611]

You are teaching me how to talk and express my opinion without knowing that :D Great video, awesome choice of books (I'm definitely coming back to it for inspiration when I finish mine)

[@SarahDillon]

Teodora S Agreed!! That’s what I loved about this vid

[@isabellawalser4150]

Great video, I really enjoy your book videos! And by the way (since I'm a Latinist with a PhD in Neo-Latin): it's 'prin[k]ipia' according to the so-called pronuntiatus restitutus (i.e. the reconstructed and probably more authentic classical pronunciation of Latin).

[@SimonClark]

Well this is the most authoritative answer I could have asked for, thank you!

[@raykent3211]

Isabella Walser I was wondering about prin chi pia. Sadly I don't know Latin or modern italian, anyway thanks for the focaccia and ciao!

[@bozontour_9495]

Saw a comment you left on a hatfilms video and just checked out ur channel, it’s really interesting and you have a good style!

[@ItsThatRebz]

I really like your book-related videos! I’ve added some of the ones you talked about in this one to my to-read list. Hope we get to see more book-related videos in the future!

[@ryanfairlie2651]

Colson is coming to talk at my school next week. Was debating if I should go or not. Now I certainly will. Thanks for the heads up!

[@uchihamadara6024]

Simon I've been watching these videos since you were a little baby finishing your masters and now you've done your phd. I'm like a proud father. Even though I'm 18 years old and a few years younger than you. congratulations!

[@stephenworsley]

Literally minutes before opening youtube and seeing this video I ordered Sapiens and Prisoners of Geography based on your previous recommendations. Great video, keep them coming! Also I'm liking the Real Engineering t-shirt.

[@PinkDiamond7777777]

This is brilliant. Very interesting range of books. Hoping to read some of them.

[@acdrcrt3190]

Hi Simon ! I had heard very good things about The Underground Railroad, I really need to get to it^^ I really liked the comparison you made between Turtles/TFIOS and Pride and Prejudice/Persuasion, it's very true ! I personally read TFIOS when I was a teenager and Turtles as an adult, and with both books I really felt that they spoke me. I concur on reading the books in John's voice though.

[@miheervaidya]

I got and read Sapien because of your earlier recommendations. Looking forward to pick up one of the books recommended in this video. Thank you so much. :).

[@manhaesmusa]

1808 by Laurentino Gomes is a fantastic book as well. It is part of a series of 3 books written about part of Brazilian history beginning when the king of Portugal fled to Brazil to escape Napoleon. Unfortunately, I think only the first book has been translated to English until now.

[@Relaxchan]

Never tried the fault in our stars myself, but love turtles and the themes it deals with. The anxiety captured is so on point. I just bought never split the difference, the underground railroad and issac newton after this. What have you done to my wallet, Simon?? Love these book reviews. More please!!

[@SimonClark]

Mwahahaha sorry not sorry :P

[@namitanene3531]

You. Are. Awesome. And you've really really inspired me to study when I didn't feel like it. You're awesome!

[@worldofwoodrow3192]

Brilliant video, Doctor.

[@gracecarter1469]

I think you would like the following books: S. by J.J. Abrams and Doug Dorst, The Power by Naomi Alderman, and All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

[@ejc9062]

W.r.t the pronunciation of 'principia', from what I know, it seems to depend on style; dependent upon the use of either ecclesiastical or classical Latin it can be said 'prin-sip-E-ah' or 'prin-kip-E-ah' respectively.

[@kyraanne6245]

Fiction: White Teeth, which you will have heard of I'm sure Non-Fiction: In Europe by Geert Mak (Simon, you will LOVE this! A Dutch historian writing about twentieth-century Europe who is a celebrity in the Netherlands for his accurate writing as a historian, whilst also upkeeping this captivating prose making him sound like a novelist, his work is translated to English and published either by Vintage or Penguin, not sure, and my English girlfriend who usually only reads fiction is currently reading it, and it's BIG, but she loves it! 100% recommendation to you)

[@n.m.8728]

I wasn't going to read Turtles but you've convinced me.

[@melissamybubbles6139]

I really like that the teenagers think with the eloquence of adults in John Green's books because when I was a teenager I wanted to know how adults thought so I could imitate their thoughts. It would have helped me think about my life to read an adult infusing teenage life with adult perspective. Thanks for making this channel. I've been wanting a channel by a geek who likes to read.

[@inthesejeans]

Props to you for diversifying your author content. I am always trying to recognizing those little tendencies I have to stick with movies, books or music within my comfort zone of familiarity, so your comments about trying to read more from people of color made me examine my own habits. Thanks for the thoughts, Simon!

[@annaquintrell1587]

I just finished Artemis and thoroughly enjoyed it! If you like audiobooks, Rosario Dawson does an amazing job with Jazz's sassy personality and I highly recomend listening to her.

[@roberternest9917]

Bro this is so useful! If I may suggest: Influence by Robert Cialdini, and Thinking Fast and Slow!

[@KiyoshiSounkyo]

INDEED IT HAS BEEN A WHILE, I HAD BEEN WAITING FOR THIS FOR TOO LONG!!! Now excuse me while I go watch this video.

[@itismetaphorical1016]

Yay ! Many many congratulations on 100k . Have you read the book thief by any chance ?

[@Hector_Moira]

If you're reading the prince, you should also read "Discourse on Titus Levi" also by Machiavelli. This book also centers around his thoughts on politics and power. You will see that he was heavily influenced by the Roman Republic and it's ideals. Mainly the aspect that is the Senate with the book mentioned and the office of dictator in "The Prince."

[@michaelmassajr.9996]

Yaaaaaaasssss part 2 of the best books on Earth. Grats on 100k :)

[@potatopassingby]

100k ! :D congratz Simon you deserve this and more!! edit: 3 minutes in a 20 minute video and there are already people commenting pfft

[@lifewithdylan]

The last book i read was Of Mice and Men for GCSE's haha

[@SimonClark]

Which is a GREAT book tbf

[@lifewithdylan]

agreed!

[@inessamaria2428]

The books reviews are back!!!!! Yeahhhh Are you intend to make this kind of video for season? Next one will be Spring 2018? I read Nutshell by Ian McEwan in 2017. It´s fantastic, I think you may like it!

[@matthewyancey2260]

To infinity and beyond by Eli moar is a great math book talking on how the ideas of infinity have changed. Would recommend

[@SimonClark]

Ooo I'd not heard of that one, thanks for the recommendation!

[@olu14od]

Hello Simon. A recommendation for a book by a poc that's non-fiction history is Black and British by David Olusoga I finished it not too long ago and thought it very informative( there was 4 part bbc documentary same name & same author if you're interested). A really really really great general world history book is, the silk roads by Peter Frankopan. Massive congratulations on your PhD. It will be Professor Simon not too soon. By the way; I read harari's Sapiens and loved it which is why I recommended these two 'big' history books to you or books dealing with longer periods of history.

[@roryonabike5863]

Will be purchasing Farmelo's The Strangest Man. You might like Richard Rhodes's The Making of the Atomic Bomb, which won the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award and the National Book Critics Circle Award. The Amazon page has endorsements from Isaac Asimov, Carl Sagan and five Nobel Prize winners in Physics and Chemistry. It's quite a book. In places, Rhodes even shows a flair for humour, such as when he writes about creating the first sustained chain reaction (no, it wasn't self-evident that it could be controlled) at a University of Chicago playing field. Amazon says that this book is its #1 best seller on nuclear physics, despite having been published 30 years ago.

[@roryonabike5863]

I’d just like to add that the book is about 750 pages long and that some people, judging from Amazon comments, find it daunting. It is certainly not a “nuts and bolts” simplified history. It starts in the late 1800s and covers the whole history of nuclear physics up to Hiroshima and Nagasaki, including the men and women who carried out the research, the science (which is not dumbed down, but understandable to a non-technical reader who is prepared to make an effort), and the political, social, economic, ethical and military issues. For the impatient, the pace of the book picks up markedly as the Manhattan Project gets under way. And Rhodes’s writing on what happened at Hiroshima and Nagasaki rivals the powerful, classic first person account that John Hersey wrote shortly after Hiroshima for the New Yorker. When I finished this book I saw the whole of 20th century history through a new prism. It is a masterpiece, and especially relevant given the re-emergence of nuclear weapons as a real issue today, not that the issue has ever left us.

[@fortheloveofLDS]

John has responded to that criticism about his intellectual YA characters, I believe it was in a tumblr post. Not saying you'll be satisfied by the answer, but at least he's aware that people have made that critique. Also, I read The Visual Display of Quantitative Information because of one of your past book videos. Well, I got most of the way through it before it got requested by another student and I had to return it to the campus library. I can't be mad about that though, I guess.

[@RoshnaOmer94]

Thanks for the recommendations, I recommend the new Leonardo Da Vinci, not very scientific but very gripping. As a female grad student i loved artimis (I related to her in some ways)

[@davidq.1321]

I have recently got a 40 euro voucher card for my local bookstore, and was about to ask you which books you reccommended when i saw the red youtube bell, saw what vid it was and voila

[@claudiajade624]

There is a series on Stan called Underground that sounds like it's based on that book - v good. I would recommend 'why I'm no longer talking to white people about race' - quite confronting and enlightening about race relations in Britain specifically. Can also recommend 'gender games', which is a very engaging look at gender roles and trans issues. I am currently smashing though my 10 book goal for the year with almost 3 books 😊 (gotta love that Audible...only downside is potential lack of titles)

[@texrichardson9846]

I would recommend Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!

[@raykent3211]

Tex Richardson absolutely!

[@inessamaria2428]

I´ve read Socrates´ Defence by Plato for a paper. It is interesting.

[@rokjinu1764]

Regarding your thoughts on how the characters speak on John Green's books: You say that they are very bright and eloquent and you brought up that maybe that's how the characters imagine they sound. I think that's the right idea. Aza is, I believe, an unreliable narrator. I believe the events transpired, but maybe not exactly how we are told. If your thoughts can not be your then can memories not be wholely yours? I think in most of Green's novels we can say that the writing is a smart narator pretending to be smarter, but here I think that Aza is a smart narator pretending to be smarter because it is one part of her that she knows she can totally control. Inflating her intelligence allows her to cope with telling us about her mental health to make it seem just that little bit more like she has it all together when she doesnt. We assume people who talk in a "smart" way are more competent. I might be reading too much into it, but as John says "books belong to their readers". Just because something isn't intended doesn't mean it can't be there.

[@ashishpatil6146]

The book recommendation is ="All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony doerr, WINNER of PULITZER and CARNEGIE for fiction. And secondly Is it still gonna be" I am Simon, a fourth year PhD candidate at the University of Exeter" in the description section?

[@marcemmanuel9388]

If you want a book recommendation I would go for "How the French Think" by Suddhir Hazareedingh. As someone who grew up in France it's surprisingly accurate, but also very readable. Interesting read it is.

[@MrAngiecakess]

SIMON you need to read The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd!!! It's incredible as both a print book and an audiobook.

[@mangajag]

>3< love these types of videos, it pushes me to wanna read more (love books but I have dyslexia, books are cheaper then the audio versions if there are any)

[@RodrigoCastroAngelo]

17:02 I had to sing Schuyler Sisters out loud before going on with the video lmao

[@leonietrzeba6778]

I live for this reference

[@stephraver4886]

You should read Trumpet by Jackie Kay if you want to expand your book kinds

[@simonwhitten338]

Latin has no soft c, it's pronounced "prin-kip-eeya."

[@simonwhitten338]

I don't know anything about choral music but it is quite common for modern usages to retroactively apply soft c's to Latin words and names ("Caesar" is a near ubiquitous example), but this stands in contrast to classical pronunciation.

[@simonwhitten338]

Good to know, I suspected it would be something like this.

[@rahimdina8910]

Devotin I think you’re daft, Ecclesiastical Latin is not proper Classical Latin

[@shikharrohela650]

just when I was about to sleep

[@thetactician4505]

Have you read any Walter Isaacson biographies?

[@TheWhightlight]

I dont even remember your last book video this is like a breath of fresh content

[@TheWhightlight]

Can't wait to see what your beard has to say about this

[@laurapalazzo8894]

Congratulations on the PhD, Dr. Simon!

[@SimonClark]

Thank you!

[@sabrinazzz3257]

omfg i see the underground railway u click, even if it’s two years old. great choice simoooon!

[@unlovableghost]

I just got Isaac Newton and Never split the difference :) thank you for the recommendations. I also enjoyed Turtles, however a bit less than TFiOS which was a bit sad. I have to disagree with what you said about the book being YA, I read mostly YA, New Adult and Fiction and I think part of the point of YA books is preparing you for the rest of your life, in that sense I think the way in which Turtles addresses mental illness was very well executed and is rightfully directed to a younger demographic (especially If we remember some of these teenagers deal with mental illness in their daily life). I think it's awesome that you're wanting to read more diverse books, I would highly recommend We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, it's a very short yet powerful read and it is based on a TED talk she did. Only 52 pages and super good. Big love x

[@danieljacksonhoare7908]

Highly recommend Dark Matter by Blake Crouch and The Angel's Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

[@erickmunoz9999]

You have got to read Musashi by Eiji Y. if you haven't already.

[@jamesbearpark3794]

I can recommend 'Magonia' by Maria Dahvana Headley. It's a modern representation of a 17th century mythical world in the sky

[@libbyl1411]

I would recommend The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben - I think you’d really like it!

[@SimonClark]

It's on my list!

[@libbyl1411]

Simon Clark Yay :)

[@jadeduncan4510]

Have you read to kill a mockingbird

[@JumpDog98]

100k subscribers, well done!

[@gearsexposed]

Have you read any Stephen King novels? I'm almost done reading It and it's great.

[@AlenaCantFly]

On your thoughts on Turtles: as a teenager with mental health issues, i was glad to see this kind of representation in YA in a somber and mature way 🙊

[@johannauhl8862]

congratulations for 100k! and for completing your Phd!

[@pedoelf907]

More book vids! They're awesome

[@eidechsebernstein954]

You should read The Secret History by Donna Tartt!

[@tacopizza493]

I am into history, so I would recommend "Lincoln's Boys" I found it enjoyable tho I understand that people find that type of reading tedious. Lol

[@sighchedelic7939]

Have you by any chance read homo deus by yuval noah harari because I remember you reading homo sapiens

[@shatley123]

I thought Isaac Newton never visited the ocean, what's up with the cover?

[@Kreativproz]

How do you find time to read. Whenever I make a plan and decide to read, I always end up not doing it due to other things

[@interstellar_4431]

What is the way to remember for long time??

[@caseytran4451]

A book that turtles reminded me of was wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson. It's a very similar premise, but with anorexia instead of OCD. I felt more real to me and it's important in the same kind of way

[@katydidwhat6120]

I haven't read Turtles, but when he described it, I too thought of Wintergirls. The writing comes off disjointed, which a lot of people complained about in reviews, but it felt real because people's thought patterns aren't usually as "eloquent" and "organized" as they're written in books. It's a hard thing to pull off without coming off as sloppy, but with certain types of concepts and plots it works well.

[@titiros9414]

I love Andy Wier works especially The Martian, it’s one of my favorite books of all the time but when it comes to Artemis, honestly i was despointed

[@joshb398]

Have you read The Beginning of Infinity by David Deutsch yet? If not you should and let us know what you think.

[@melanova5]

YAASSS CONGRATS ON THE PHD SIMON! 🎉🎉🎉

[@speedcuber103]

Wow 100k and a thesis out of the way, that is either great timing or physics at its greatest

[@funnysele]

Ahhh I've been waiting for a book video for so long, thanks! Also, "Flatland" is fantastic, you should read it asap :) along with "Homo Deus" - the follow up to "Sapiens" by Noah Harari

[@SimonClark]

Ah yes I REALLY need to get Homo Deus, after I loved Sapiens so much I shouldn't have waited so long to get reading the sequel, I heard it's great!

[@Paul-Jan]

I think Homo Deus is written a little better even than Sapiens. But especially in the beginning of Homo Deus there is a lot of the same stuff we already enjoyed in Sapiens.

[@funnysele]

It really is! Although some of the "predictions" he makes in the book (2015) are not very relevant anymore since things took a different turn, which is also interesting to note. Ps. Next time you come to Oxford, do let us know! I'm sure I'm not the only one that would enjoy a meet and greet with you :)

[@hendrycaven]

Where did you go in Croatia?

[@kieranmclaughlin4014]

I've not watched it in full yet, but great vid so far!

[@Jack_L]

Simon, have you always enjoyed reading this much or did you push yourself to get into it? I love the idea of books, but reading them puts me right to sleep. I figure its due to my poor sleeping habits, but you seemed to push yourself to mental exhaustion frequently while working on the PhD and yet you read for leisure throughout it. I don't get it, I just want to love reading as much as I love books!

[@sabinazunjic464]

Hello Simon! I highly recommend you read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks!! It's unfortunately not written by a POC author but it questions notions regarding science, consent, race and class in America written from a journalistic perspective. I think you'd really enjoy it!

[@SimonClark]

I've heard a lot about the book! Wanted to read it for a while, I shall bump it up my list :)

[@februarisharuby5121]

As a scientist, who do you think is a better scientist or who influenced the world more? Albert Einstein or Isaac Newton? I’m a big fan of your awesome channel btw :)

[@SimonClark]

Without a doubt, Newton

[@februarisharuby5121]

Awesome :)

[@raykent3211]

Februarisha Ruby I agree with Simon on that. Newton was very, very extraordinary. Totally weird. There's a lovely story about Robert Hooke (I think) visiting him and asking if he had any ideas on planetary motion. Done that! Let me see, it's somewhere in one of these piles of papers... nope, can't find it at the minute and I want to get on with my alchemical experiments. (I'm taking liberties for comic effect.) What had he done? Only invent differential calculus, the laws of motion and the inverse square law for gravity.... and not tell anyone.

[@priscillaose5772]

Great! This inspires me to read more

[@sortof3337]

How many years did it take you to finish Phd? 3 years?

[@Josh-ek8qq]

Carbon Democracy by Timothy Mitchell I finished recently for a module, and it's incredible, I think you would love it Simon. How oil and democracy are linked and how our current democratic machinery is incapable of preventing catastrophic climate change.

[@SimonClark]

oooOOOOooo that does sound good! I shall add it on my goodreads

[@aubreeswart2206]

I love Turtles all the way Down!

[@alfie6098]

Hey, I've got no problem with it, but what do you mean when you say "This video is sponsored by the vlogbrothers" ? Is it just to decrease worldsuck like you said or is it promotional? Just wondering, you've fueled by addicition either way! Oh, and i thoroughly recommend Flaubert's Parrot by Julian Barnes, a weird but funny and intriguing read!

[@SimonClark]

Ah yes, that's something I'm required to put there after they gave me a grant to buy some video equipment. The purpose of the grant system was to support educational creators, so they just told me "make good stuff, and put the fact that we sponsored you in your description".

[@alfie6098]

Simon Clark Okay that's fair and just. Thanks for responding, and good luck with what lies ahead!

[@neutrino5695]

Read Educated by Tara Westover. I'm 100 percent sure you ganna love it.

[@David-np2gb]

If you haven't read flatland yet, you're gonna love it

[@Knils0607]

Faust from Goethe might be interesting for you, especially the first part the "scholar's tragedy". Hard to read, but it is definetly worth it!

[@SimonClark]

I've not read any Goethe yet, which I really must fix!

[@johncrwarner]

Goethe's Faust is probably seen on the stage or more practically on film - I have been lucky enough to see it at my local theatre in Bielefeld - but the Faust film I was bought by my partner was the 1960 version which has a classic Mephistopheles: www.imdb.com/title/tt0163624/

[@armanmkhitaryan27]

Hey, Simon, thanks for the vid. I can recommend a great book by Prof Edward Baptist, The Half Has Never Been Told on how American, in fact the world, capitalism thrived on slave labor in the south of America and contrary to popular belief the American North too. The slave business was turned into a serious matter across the country with institutions looking pretty much like the modern-day financial institutions. It has long been believed that new cotton seeds and machinery helped boost cotton production worldwide, yet Baptist shows based on meticulous evidence that the real game changer was ... the whip. Slave owners would set ever increasing daily ratios of cotton collected and would beat up the slave with a whip and whatnot if he or she got less. We're talking about a few million people (about a million at least 'brought' from the North) who actually "helped" the US become cotton exporter number one in the world, and even surpass Britain with a horrible record of colonial slave labor of its own prior to the 19th century. You'll find real human stories of runaway slaves in the book, and Edward Baptist is running a project dedicated to collecting the approx. 100 thousand runaway ADs he estimates are still there in order to make them available for everyone online. You can find some with google search... Horrible things. So modern historians and economists are changing their outlook on how the initial wealth was gained under capitalism. It's not the only serious study on the matter. It's been estimated that 20% of France's wealth came from just one colony, Haiti, that was looted for a few centuries. Mentioned in Noam Chomsky's works, I've read the original study too, forgot the title, wouldn't be too difficult to find. The same can be said when it comes to all other former imperial powers. It's a sad fact to realize a good deal of the opulent, historical buildings you love Europe for (of course not only for, but still) and its power and wealth come from slave labor - needless to say what 'slave labor' means in reality. Important to remember. Empire of Cotton by Sven Beckert wold be another major book on the topic, a groundbreaking study, and so on. Thought might interest you.

[@ngomsa]

I am a first-time writer and have just released my book called A magician's Web. I don't have a lot of reviewers and if you had time was hoping to hear your thoughts on my book - it is currently free on Amazon Kindle. I enjoy your reviews and I hope that this book would be a good read for you .

[@juliak7654]

Haha loved that Hamilton reference! :D

[@lukasniebuhr6870]

Do you like Haruki Murakami?

[@SimonClark]

Shamefully I have never read any of his books - they are on my list though!

[@lukasniebuhr6870]

As they should be, I'd recommend 'the wind up bird chronicle'

[@viralpatel3675]

your vlog is worth following