Exhalation, Ted Chiang, 2019

Rating: 4/5

Exhalation is a collection of nine short stories with varying lengths, from 3 pages to over 100 pages. Each of them combines science fiction with human emotions such as longing, love, greed, regret and redemption, and that combination makes many of these stories incredible reads.

Most of these short stories had been published previously, but nevertheless, the range of ideas that these stories explore and the imagination behind them is extremely impressive. These nine stories cover a gamut of ideas that include a doorway that allows one to travel 20 years, intelligent digital objects, a robotic nanny, the ability to recall any memory instantly, and a device to communicate with oneself in other branches of the universe.

My favourite stories include The Merchant and the Alchemist’s Gate, written like an Arabian Nights story, that uses time travel to explore lessons learnt by the protagonists from their experiences. In The Truth of Fact, the Truth of Feeling, Chiang explores the delicate balance between mimi (what one considers right) and vough (a precise fact) through two sub-stories involving colonised tribesmen's struggles with written words replacing oral memories and a modern world where humans can recall any memory instantly. Anxiety is the Dizziness of Freedom explores greed, regret and redemption using the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics, in which humans can communicate and collaborate with versions of their self in other branches of the universe.  

The problem with anthologies, as to be expected, is one of mixed quality of the stories. For example, and the reason for only a 4-star rating, The Lifecycle Of Software Objects takes up a third of the book and fails to grip. It talks about the gradual maturing of AI objects (called digients) and their ability to experience love, independence and even sexual attractions. But overall, Chiang's imagination, the variety in the stories, and the underlying messages in them make Exhalation a satisfying read.

Pros: Very imaginative, wide range of ideas, couples science fiction with human nature, well-written

Cons: Disparate quality with a less interesting story taking a third of the book 

Leave it to Smith, PG Wodehouse, 1923

Rating: 5/5

Leave it to Psmith is the "comfort book" -- the creme custard (for me) of books -- that I always turn to when I need to brighten my mood. I must have read this book from cover to cover at least half a dozen times and parts of it umpteen times. It's amazing to think that I feel this about a book written a hundred years ago!

I love PG Wodehouse's brand of humour and I rank the Psmith books and the Blandings Castle ones ahead of the Jeeves and Wooster series. Leave it to Psmith brings the first two together and has a cornucopia of characters that gather together at Blandings Castle, some of them who are imposters and many who are trying to steal Lady Constance's necklace. Besides Psmith who is looking for a change in his profession and is willing to do anything Provided It Has Nothing To Do With Fish, there is the bone-headed Lord Emsworth - master of the castle, his  imperious sister Lady Constance, his vacant son Feddie, the suspicious secretary Baxter, the crooked Smooth Lizzie and Eddie, the cheerful Eve, some of Psmith's and Eve's friends and the list goes on. There are several sub-plots within the main plot, quite a few of which include romantic entanglements. The book proceeds at a laugh-aloud, leisurely yet madcap pace and all the umpteen threads are neatly disentangled at the end.

It is said that "brevity is the soul of wit". Wodehouse clearly does not believe in that -- he often uses several words where one would suffice and a paragraph or two where a sentence would have been enough, and that's what makes his writing brilliant! Characters do not turn, they "spin on their axis". They do not slouch but "droop like a wet sock, as was his habit when he had nothing to prop his spine against". He takes about twenty lines at the start of the book to essentially say that Lord Emsworth was sad because he had mislaid his glasses.

I've often laughed aloud while reading this book and if there is a bemused person sitting next to me, I invariably ask him or her to read the page that I am on. Sometimes, that person fails to find the humour, so clearly, PG Wodehouse is not for everyone. But for me, this is my #1 fiction read of all times!

Pros: Evergreen, laugh-aloud, a "comfort book"

Cons: The Wodehousian style of humour is not for everyone

The Ride of a Lifetime, Robert Iger, 2019

Rating: 5/5

When I picked up the book, I wondered what my expectations from it were. I was not very familiar with the Disney story so insights into it would help. I would have liked a candid discussion of various issues that Disney has faced over the years, those which were not in the public domain. Like any memoir, one would expect to get insights into the person behind the story. And finally, a book like this should carry some business lessons. The book satisfies these expectations well, though some more than others.

The book is divided into 2 parts: the first one leads to his ascension to the top job at Disney and the second talks about his leadership years. It is thoughtful in parts, provides leadership lessons in others and is downright exciting in some, especially around the run-up to the acquisitions of Pixar or the creation of the Black Panther movie, which many thought was a bad idea because of the lead superhero being black. There are even the poignant parts, especially his relationship with Steve Jobs.  Even as you get to know Iger the successful CEO well, he does occassionally provide insights into himself including his thoughts behind a possible run for the US President. Iger walks the fine line between being too humble about his achievements and glossing over his failures — “finding that balance between accepting credit and not making too much of the hype”, as he puts it. At one place, he talks about feeling guilty in front of his colleagues when attention and credit is directed towards him, and that is particularly endearing.

For readers looking to take away some leadership lessons, Iger provides his 10 lessons at the outset: optimism, courage, focus, decisiveness, curiosity, fairness, thoughtfulness, authenticity, perfection and integrity. And at the end, he also lists down in one place all the various business lessons strewn throughout the book.

There are a few aspects of his story that are missing though, for example, his initial rise from a lowly level at ABC (it's completely omitted for some reason) or the pressures of his job on his personal life — he covers the separation from his first wife in just a couple of lines. Iger does say, though, that this book is not a memoir and as the title suggests, it’s more about business lessons. I would disagree though — given the profile of the writer, that distinction will blur. The book is a fairly short one and a few more pages would have been more satisfying. Also, it's a pity that the book was written in 2019 — it misses out on the biggest challenge that Disney may have ever faced ... that of the corona virus!

Pros: Insights into the Disney story and into himself, useful leadership lessons

Cons: Some important aspects of his story have been omitted

Alchemy: The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don't Make Sense, Rory Sutherland, 2019

Rating: 5/5

Rory Sutherland is the vice-chairman of Ogilvy UK and uses his vast experience and trove of interesting anecdotes to put together a book on how irrational thinking often works better, which is interesting even for a logical thinking reader such as me. Right at the outset, Sutherland lists downs his 11 rules of alchemy. These are basically all variations of each other and Rule #6 encapsulates the direction that the book will take: The problem with logic is that it kills off magic.

Sutherland's basic premise is that rational analysis is based on big data that comes from the past and cannot account for an unexpected event. Which is why irrational thinking creates alchemy. Also, humans do not behave rationally all the time. Why else would perfectly sane people pay $5 for a drink that they can make for pennies at home (Starbucks) or why would a coarse uncomfortable fabric that takes ages to dry and popular with labourers become fashionable (jeans)? He gathers his argument in six well-structured sections and then follows that up with a seventh where he lays out his recommendations. While a large part of what he writes is related to the advertising or marketing fields in some way or the other, he has used examples from other areas as well to buttress his arguments.

One of the most fascinating aspects of the book are the various anecdotes strewn through it such as the one on Red Bull's success (it was expensive, came in a tiny can and had a disgusting taste as per consumer trials, all counterintuitive to a successful launch) or the story of striped toothpaste (it mixes in your mouth anyway but signals to the user that it fulfils two functions) or how mailer donation campaigns work better if the return envelope has the flap on the shorter side (as it seems more appropriate to slip a cheque in).

The book is not without its problems. In his desire to hammer down the key argument of the book, Sutherland makes it completely one-sided. In the process, he pooh-poohs economists and logical thinkers several times in the book which can be somewhat off-putting. Having said that, the breezy style of writing and some fascinating insights coupled with interesting stories make this a worthwhile read. The various footnotes in each chapter, by themselves, would make compelling reading!

Pros: Fascinating anecdotes, compelling arguments

Cons: The constant putting down of logic is somewhat off-putting

The Guest List, Lucy Foley, 2020

Rating: 5/5

While choosing this book, I came across a few descriptions that compared this book to those by Agatha Christie. This book, however, is no classic murder mystery; in fact, the identity of the victim is revealed only 90% into the book. What this book is, though, is a very good psychological thriller!

A reality show star, Will, and an online publishing celebrity, Jules, host their wedding on a remote Irish island that is beautiful and eerie in turn. The presence of the cormorant birds on the island, a harbinger of evil and death as per folklore, quickly indicate the direction that the book will take. The main cast of characters also include Will's best man Johnno, Jules' best friend Charles and his wife Hannah, Jules' half-sister Olivia, the event manager Aoife and her husband Freddy, and an assortment of family and friends. As the book progresses, it becomes clear that most of the characters harbour dark secrets, and these are revealed slowly, layer by layer, leading to the climatic revelations.

I do not consider most murder mysteries, including those of Agatha Christie, as particularly well-written -- after all, the focus is on the mystery rather than on the writing. However, The Guest List is a notable exception. Foley writes very well and has a nice turn of phrase. At the same time, her writing is very easy to follow so that the reader can spend her energy in thinking about the various characters and their secrets, rather than in keeping pace with the story. The construct of the book is interesting with the events of the wedding evening narrated in the third person interspersed with those of earlier in the day and of the preceding evening narrated in the first person by Aoife, Hannah, Jules, Johnno, and Olivia. The story is told in the present tense throughout, and this along with the vivid descriptions, makes it extremely immersive for the reader.

The pace is languid but at no time will the reader's interest flag -- the slow peeling of the finer details and the interesting psychological studies of the various characters ensure that. The only fault to find, if any, is that some of the standard tropes of a murder mystery have been used, enabling us to guess the identity of the victim and the perpetrator as we progress through the book. But that does not detract from the enjoyment of reading it one bit!

Pros: Extremely well written, interesting construct, unputdownable

Cons: Somewhat predictable before the end

Tata vs Mistry, Deepali Gupta, 2019

Rating: 4/5

While this book is strictly for those familiar with the boardroom battles between Ratan Tata and Cyrus Mistry, and will likely not engage others, it's a comprehensive and pain-staking compilation of what transpired during that period.

Ratan Tata had chosen Cyrus Mistry to succeed him in December 2012 as the first non-Tata chairperson of the vast Tata conglomerate but fired him in October 2016, even before his first term was complete, due to a significant fall-out between them.  This book covers the events leading to the fall-out and subsequent ones, leading eventually to the court cases, the coverage is comprehensive and in 20 succint chapters (although the chapter titles towards the end could have been a little less juvenile). Gupta is a financial journalist and her writing style, which is easy and fluid, is especially suited for the book.

Gupta has cast herself in the role of a narrator of facts and does not attempt to superimpose her own views on them -- given her profession, it is likely that she may not have wanted to be seen to take sides. Reading between the lines, this fight has been positioned as one between a professional who coldly evaluates the businesses (Mistry) and a Tata with an emotional connect to the brand who is probably driven by his individual passions too. The former is focused on immediate gains to minority shareholders while the latter cares about the long-term impact on the brand. It is tough to conclude who is right from the narrative, and that is probably Gupta's objective as well.

While picking up a book of this nature, one would expect some "insider" insights or even some credible gossip. That, sadly, is missing for the most part. So, for a reader like me, who was closely following the events, there is not much new to learn. But I would still give it 4 stars for the comprehensive coverage of events and I would recommend this book to any reader who has a basic familiarity with this saga but is unaware of the details.

Pros: Well-written, painstakingly compiled, a solid overview of this saga

Cons: No new information for one who had closely followed the events, will not engage a reader completely unfamiliar with them