I dusted this magnificent book about two years ago. It’s impression remains very profound & I am writing this review after re-consulting all notes & rereading multiple marked sections that were designated during the first engagement. Published by one of the absolute greats in independent Middle-Eastern publishing – Al Saqi Books, these writings & their visual companions confront the Syrian tragedy head-on through an incredible inventory of artistic mediums comprising over fifty Syrian contributors, with examples of the Continue reading Syria Speaks – Art and Culture from The Frontline (multiple contributors)
Category Archives: Books
The Morning They Came For Us – Dispatches from Syria (Janine Di Giovanni)
“Now, several years on and with hundreds of thousands dead, something has changed irrevocably in his country. It will not return to what it was, not now, not ever. How can Syria ever be what it once was? It has been burnt alive by hatred.”
I was initially sceptical about this book & had no hitherto experience of it’s author. My suspicion was motivated only once I had brought the book & had a quick glance at who was recommending it on the jacket along with Giovanni’s sprawling CV, which had some pretty unsavoury institutions mentioned. Continue reading The Morning They Came For Us – Dispatches from Syria (Janine Di Giovanni)
Swimming With Sharks – My Journey into the World of the Bankers (Joris Luyendijk)
A hugely informing book, with tons & tons of anonymous insider information & direct accounts from bankers & members of the financial sector on the industries internal machinations. Yes, that’s straight from the horse’s mouth, off-record (or rather with assured anonymity) revelations & insight from sources operating in the profession from a wealth of positions. Continue reading Swimming With Sharks – My Journey into the World of the Bankers (Joris Luyendijk)
Blacklisted – The Secret War Between Big Business and Union Activists (Dave Smith & Phil Chamberlain)
So I am thinking on which angle to begin writing on this historical book? should it be on the “conspiracy theory”? or rather when the “theory”, after years of strenuous denial by the perpetrators, media & the regulators & legal operators that should have been bringing them down, gets total & utter public confirmation & an ‘oh yes! You were actually 100% right all along’ moment? Or should it be the Continue reading Blacklisted – The Secret War Between Big Business and Union Activists (Dave Smith & Phil Chamberlain)
Ukraine Diaries – Dispatches from Kiev (Andrey Kurov)
A front-line testament of a revolution from writer & journalist Andrey Kurkov. Apparently never intended to be compiled into a book, Kurkov began writing a diary on Ukraine’s 2013 pro-European protests from a first-hand perspective (his flat being just a few hundred yards from Independence Square in Kiev). Getting accurate information on Ukraine can be difficult, as both Europe/The West & especially Russia deploy so much disinformation, hyper-bias, omission & propaganda. Continue reading Ukraine Diaries – Dispatches from Kiev (Andrey Kurov)
The Moneyless Man – A Year of Freeconomic Living (Mark Boyle)
A year in the United Kingdom without spending so much as a single penny!? A concept/action of such importance, taken to a considerable extreme (of such) to fully demonstrate the capacity of human ingenuity & ability even in the modern day environment. It’s challenging to over exaggerate the importance of such experimentation. By taking it to such consummate frontier (an entire year on absolutely zero money) Continue reading The Moneyless Man – A Year of Freeconomic Living (Mark Boyle)
Nothing Is True And Everything Is Possible – Adventures in modern Russia (Peter Pomerantsev)
An absolute smasher of a book! on a page tearing tip. I came across it by chance whilst sifting through the isles in a decent shop. Wus’ this? It’s got pretty poor sleeve design, especially considering the strength & style of the material within. But the vignette on the back convinced me that this was essential reading based on the journalists insight. I wasn’t wrong. Continue reading Nothing Is True And Everything Is Possible – Adventures in modern Russia (Peter Pomerantsev)
No Such Thing As A Free Gift – The Gates Foundation and the Price of Philanthropy (Linsey McGoey)
An extremely important & timely exposé. Bill Gates is an absolute fucking monster! Beyond his repulsive corporate aggression, brand-bloat, ‘compulsory’-software imposition/unilateral product bondage & horrible diversity-quelling market monopolizing mania of Micro Soft miasma, a much more sick, sinister & damaging agenda is at foot. Continue reading No Such Thing As A Free Gift – The Gates Foundation and the Price of Philanthropy (Linsey McGoey)
Disaster Capitalism – Making a killing out of catastrophe (Antony Loenwenstein)
So two words to kick the door in with – VITAL & MANDATORY!!! Capitalism & calamity, profit & crisis – are becoming like conjoined twins. War-pollution-incarceration… inflict, sustain, clean-up/eradicate, reaping revenues at every stage. You notice how many of today’s greatest problems/threats/fiascos crawled out of yesterday’s solutions or technological advancements (ISIS/Terrorism, Climate Extermination, Food Insecurity etc’ etc’ etc). Continue reading Disaster Capitalism – Making a killing out of catastrophe (Antony Loenwenstein)
Swallow This – Serving up the food industry’s darkest secrets (Joanna Blythman)
Somehow, despite my huge interest in the topic, I only discovered Joanna Blythman recently. Not unlike fellow peer Felicity Lawrence (who works more on the abuse of workers & modern slavery in large-scale commercial food production), Blythman shares the front-line of food journalism/activism. This is her fifth book on food & deals predominantly with the hidden ingredients & deceptive stealth-feeding from an increasingly abnormal industry. Continue reading Swallow This – Serving up the food industry’s darkest secrets (Joanna Blythman)