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The Little Liar by Mitch Albom

My wife and I typically read very different types of books. She enjoys romance and contemporary novels, while I gravitate toward non-fiction and historical fiction. So when she bought a collection of books from Indigo, I had no intention of reading any of them.

The only book that caught my attention was The Little Liar by Mitch Albom, a historical novel set during World War II. However, having previously read other WWII-themed books like The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris, I initially felt too fatigued to dive into another story from that era.

Fast forward a couple months… I was preparing for a 4-week vacation and needed to choose a book to bring along. Since I hadn’t purchased any new books for myself and wanted something small and lightweight, I decided to pack The Little Liar. It turned out to be my favorite read of the year.

The plot centers around 4 main characters whose lives intertwines during World War II. Nico Krispis, who begins the story as a 11 year old boy who has never told a lie. Sebastian Krispis, Nico’s older brother, who is in love with Fannie and envious of Nico’s natural charm and the affection Fannie has for him. Fannie, a close family friend and neighbor, who has a crush on Nico. And lastly Udo, a high ranking Navi officer who deceives Nico into tricking others onto trains bound for Auschwitz, setting off a tragic chain of events.

What makes The Little Liar unique is Mitch Albom’s masterful narration. The story is told from the perspective of Truth itself, which adds a layer of depth and insight you wouldn’t get from a typical narrator. This choice allows the reader to see beyond the surface of events, understanding the characters’ inner conflicts and motivations in a profound way.

Each of the four characters is thoughtfully developed, with Mitch Albom displaying different layers of their personalities to show how their experiences shape who they become. The book shows how one’s action affects not just themselves but those around them. It captures both the cruelty of war and the ways people cope, whether through resilience, denial, or self protection.

The Little Liar is a page turner that kept me engaged from start to finish. Reading it made Mitch Albom my new favorite author. I’ve already bookmarked several of his other works because I thoroughly enjoyed his writing style.

Around the same time, I visited the Auschwitz. Not long ago. Not far away. exhibition at the Royal Ontario Museum. The exhibition was thoughtfully structured, guiding visitors step-by-step through history with a mix of artifacts and survivor interviews. It was a reminder of why history and stories like this are important, so we can remember the past and ensure the same mistakes are not repeated.

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The 38 Letters from J.D. Rockefeller to His Son by J D Rockefeller

My parents often share informative videos with my brother and me. Truth be told, I tend to ignore most of them, not wanting to spend the time it takes to absorb the shared content. However, when I saw a short clip about a book detailing advice from one of the most successful businessmen to his son, it piqued my interest.

It was only after I began reading The 38 Letters from J.D. Rockefeller that I realized John D. Rockefeller was not only one of the wealthiest people in history but also built his fortune through his oil refining business. Over the years, Rockefeller wrote 38 letters to his son, sharing insights and guiding him through life’s challenges. These letters allow readers a unique window into his career experiences and the thoughtful advice he imparted to his son. Below, I’ll share my three main takeaways from the book.

Letter 4: Opportunity Comes from Taking Action

Rockefeller emphasizes that opportunity rarely just appears – you have to go out and create it yourself. He advises taking risks and seizing opportunities when they arise, rather than waiting for them to come to you. He also acknowledges that life often feels overwhelming, with too many tasks and too little time, so it’s critical to focus only on the work that will yield the greatest results.

This advice resonates strongly in my own career. I see colleagues, myself included, sometimes feeling discontented with assigned projects, waiting for that big opportunity to showcase our worth, or hoping a manager will fulfill a long-promised career boost. But it’s important to remember that we have various avenues to pursue: seeking projects that interest us and gathering enough data to ensure they get prioritized, following up with our managers for specific commitments, or even exploring new job opportunities both internally and externally. Ultimately, we are in control of our career paths.

Letter 9: Confidence and Determination Lead to the Top

Rockefeller notes that while most people aspire to reach the highest level of success, few possess the confidence and determination needed to get there. Because many people doubt their ability to succeed, they often choose paths that keep them at an average level, limiting their potential.

To reach our goals, it helps to look closely at those already performing at the level we want to achieve and identify the gaps in our own skills. Why can’t we perform at that level today? By being specific about the skills we need to improve, we can often identify practical steps to bridge those gaps. Once the concrete steps are clear, all that remains is to apply the effort and determination to achieve them.

Letter 38: How Can I Do Better Today?

Rockefeller asks, “How can I make my work more efficient today?” This simple question serves as a powerful daily exercise.

Often, we get so accustomed to our routines that we operate on autopilot, following the same patterns day in and day out. But taking a little time each month to assess our daily approach can reveal ways to become more productive and intentional in how we spend our time.

In summary, I enjoyed reading this book and appreciated how J.D. Rockefeller used personal stories to communicate key lessons to his son. Advice delivered through storytelling often has a stronger impact, making it more relatable and memorable. This is a good read for anyone looking for inspiration presented in a unique format.

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Genius Makers by Cade Metz

With the popularity of ChatGPT, artificial intelligence (AI) is getting more attention than ever. Even though I’m working as a data engineer, besides a rudimentary understanding and occasionally using ChatGPT, I have limited knowledge when it comes to AI and how it got to today’s prominence. So when I was browsing an Indigo book store nearby, Genius Makers by Cade Metz was my #1 choice from the Heather’s pick recommendation section.

Instead of focusing on the CEOs of leading tech companies, such as Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Baidu and OpenAI, Cade focused on the engineers and academics working on pushing the boundaries of artificial intelligence. This gave the story a refreshing narrative as media often focuses on the CEOs and top executives instead. By following the career progression of leading figures in the field, it helps illustrate how fierce the competition for talent was and the potential people see in it.

Unbeknownst to me, Geoffrey Hinton, one of the leading figures in deep learning, did research and taught at University of Toronto where I also went to school. Hinton received the 2018 Turing Award with Yann LeCun and Yoshua Bengio for their work on deep learning and are regarded as the Godfathers of Deep Learning. Their influence spanned multiple companies, with many of their students and previous colleagues working at leading positions in the field today.

One of the main takeaways I got is the challenges these AI scientists and academics have to overcome and the persistence it requires from the community to get artificial intelligence to where it is today. Decades ago, artificial intelligence involves coding up complex behavioral logic one line at a time. Deep learning on the other hand was often ridiculed by the leading scientists at the time. This made advancement in this field much more difficult since without broad support funds were also hard to come by in a field that requires heavy machinery and resources.

Genius Makers by Cade Metz is a page turner. It touches on the key advancement and milestone for AI, including DeepMind’s AlphaGo defeating one of the best GO players in the world, OpenAI and how it got to this point, the arms race for AI talent, and a hot topic these days… the ethics of AI. With more company investing resources into AI and the growing utility and adoption in everyday lives, it’s an exciting field to follow. I would highly recommend this book if you would like to also know the history of AI and the leading contributors of it.

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Moby Dick by Herman Melville

Moby Dick is the only book we have at our place with both an English and Chinese edition. My wife is starting to have her own book collection and she loves books with great covers. Moby Dick was one of the books she recommended to me that she felt I would enjoy. Seeing it as a book on whaling, it piqued my interest as this is the first book I’ve read on this theme.

Moby Dick by Herman Melville is known as one of the masterpieces of both American and world literature. When Moby Dick was initially published, it did not receive good reviews and was a commercial failure. It was only after Herman Melville’s passing that the novel was rediscovered and viewed as one of the great literature works of his time.

Moby Dick centered around the maniacal quest of Ahab, the captain of the Pequod whaling ship, to pursue and defeat Moby Dick, the giant white sperm whale who has bitten off Ahab’s leg in his previous whaling voyage. The novel was narrated from Ishmael’s perspective, who is one of the crew members of Pequod.

Herman Melville did a masterful job in narrating the process of a whaling voyage. He immersed readers into the whaling process and at the same time uses his words beautifully in demonstrating the different terminology and concepts that are second nature to a whaling ship crew member. It discusses how a whaling crew is formed, the roles and responsibilities of each member, the different body parts of a whale and what is more sought after, the different compartments of a whaling ship, and the grueling process of whale hunting.

Moby Dick by Herman Melville ranks among the top of my recommendation list. There’s a lot of terminologies that I’m not familiar with when it comes to whaling, but Herman did a wonderful job in educating the readers every step of the way. In a sense, you aren’t just brought along to experience the journey but also onboarded as a crew member to learn the inner workings of a whaling voyage. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed Moby Dick and this is one of the few books which I might reread some years later.

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The Pursuit of Power: Europe 1815-1914 by Richard J. Evans

The Pursuit of Power by Richard J. Evans is part of the acclaimed Penguin History of Europe series, covering the time between the fall of Napoleon and the outbreak of World War I. It provides an in-depth exploration of the social, technological, and political developments that shaped Europe during this era.

The book covers a wide range of topics, including the Industrial Revolution, the rise of nationalism, the growth of democracy, and the tensions that eventually led to World War I. It provides insights into the impact and timeline of these developments across different regions, which gives readers a holistic view of the interconnectedness of European countries.

The level of detail provided by Richard J. Evans is impressive. It includes a list of maps for topics such as the abolition of serfdom and railway building to help illustrate the different pace each region progresses. It shows how ideas spread and how decisions about adopting certain reforms can be critical to a country’s progress.

Summarizing 100 years of European history is no easy task, but Richard J. Evans has done a great job of explaining the complex forces that shaped Europe in the 19th century. One thing I would have done differently is to take notes when reading books with this amount of information provided. I find it hard to recollect some takeaways I had looking back now. Nonetheless, it’s a great book for readers looking to learn more about European history.

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The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro

Let me now posit this: ‘dignity’ has to do crucially with a butler’s ability not to abandon the professional being he inhabits.

The Remains of the day by Kazuo Ishiguro

The Remains of the Day is a novel that tells the first-person account of Stevens, a head butler at Darlington Hall. My wife recommended this book to me since she was impressed with the rave reviews of Kazuo Ishiguro, who won the 2017 Nobel Prize in Literature. Although we typically read different genres, the book’s focus on the role of a butler caught my attention, particularly given my interest in the character of Alfred in The Dark Knight trilogy.

Stevens’ employer, Mr. Farraday, suggests he take some time off while he’s away. Despite his initial reluctance, Stevens decides to take a road trip to visit a former colleague, Miss Kenton, for whom he has fond feelings, but never confessed due to his interpretation of dignity. The story centers around Stevens’ pursuit of what dignity means and the qualities of a great butler. Through reflecting on his past experiences, Stevens demonstrates how he exhibits dignity and possesses the qualities of a great butler. However as the story nears the end, Stevens begins to doubt his interpretation of dignity, as he realizes that even though he has completely given himself to his profession and serving his employer, it came at the expense of hiding his own feelings and personal opinions.

“I trusted I was doing something worthwhile. I can’t even say I made my own mistakes. Really — one has to ask oneself — what dignity is there in that?”

The Remains of the day by Kazuo Ishiguro

While I enjoyed the book’s focus on these topics, I found that not all of Stevens’ past experiences contributed meaningfully to his character development. At times, similar points were conveyed and reinforced by different experiences. However, I appreciated the book’s insights into the demanding nature of the butler profession and exploring what it means to have dignity.

Overall, The Remains of the Day offers a unique perspective on the role of a butler. While it may not appeal to all readers, its exploration of Stevens’ character and the demanding nature of his profession make it a worthwhile read for those interested in the topic.

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The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson

With the new year I’ve been thinking about how to better document my learnings from the books I’ve read. Writing doesn’t come easy to me, so each book review I wrote usually took quite some time for me to complete. Instead of no longer writing book reviews, I’ve decided to try out writing shorter reviews instead. I’ll try to limit myself to no more than 300 words to focus more on my takeaways and less on describing the plot.

The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson shows how Winston Churchill led UK during the Second World War. It gives accounts of how Churchill and his extended family was impacted by the war.

With Germany’s superior military strength, UK alone wasn’t going to be able to withstand Germany’s attacks long term. Churchill at the very outset understood the importance of getting US to become UK’s ally in order to tilt the war in UK’s favor. He communicated often with Franklin Roosevelt, US president at the time, on the the importance of US support to not only UK but to US as well.

Churchill’s leadership was instrumental as he rallied the British people to be fearless and to never surrender. He was resolute in his vision and made tough decisions to maximize the strengths of his team. This led to UK drastically increasing its arms productions which allowed UK to fortify its defense until US involvement in the war.

I enjoyed the story telling nature of the book where historical facts are presented to produce a compelling story. One aspect which I lost interest in is when the story centered too much on the lives of Churchill’s extended family. I find it taking away from the main plot while also not adding much insights. All in all this is a book I do enjoy reading for the most part, although since it’s not as focused as I would like it to be it’s not on my recommended list.

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When Genius Failed by Roger Lowenstein

When Genius Failed: The Rise and Fall of Long-Term Capital Management by Roger Lowestein details how a firm so widely regarded in the financial industry can collapse in a span of few months.

Long-Term Capital Management (LTCM) was founded in 1994 by John Meriwether. Prior to LTCM, John worked at an investment bank, Salomon Brothers, as a bond trader before becoming the vice-chairman of the company. With his experience at Salomon Brothers and his mathematics background, John brought in various academics including Myron Scholes and Paul Merton, who won the Nobel Prize in Economics. This emphasis on computer research and data analysis was uncommon at the time and gave LTCM a mystique around how they identified investment opportunities.

Coupling extensive computer research along with the theory that bond yield spreads eventually converge, LTCM traders were confident in their analysis and made unparalleled returns in their first few years by being highly leveraged. With all the momentum on its side and LTCM being greatly heralded in the financial industry, LTCM traders became more reckless in their trading. They leveraged more, invested with their private funds, and started to enter markets they were not familiar with.

Leverage allows you to invest money which you don’t have. However, on the down side, you can suffer great losses if your investment doesn’t pan out. With the financial crisis in 1997 and 1998, this impacted many markets and LTCM quickly found all its leveraged positions plummeting in value. From a net worth of 3.6 billion, LTCM lost all its value in a span of few months and entered bankruptcy as it watches Russia defaulted on its currency bonds.

The key takeaway I walked away is the importance of discipline when it comes to trading. During a bull run, people often times fell into a trap of having a sense of invincibility and will start to make uncharacteristic trades in an effort to yield higher returns. The most consistent thing is uncertainty and even though market research is important, the future is not a simple extension of past trends.

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A Promised Land by Barack Obama

The president of the United States is one of the most powerful positions held in the world. With so much power to influence both domestic and global policies, it comes with great responsibility, pressure, and scrutiny. Being someone who doesn’t follow politics closely, I still question the reasoning behind certain policies. However with so many things that happen behind the scenes and the well-coined term of playing politics, I wonder what considerations are made when drafting a bill.

A Promised Land is the first part of a two-volume memoir on Barack Obama. It goes over how Obama got into politics, how he raised through the ranks to become POTUS, and what goes into the operation that killed Osama Bin Laden.

My biggest takeaway is the amount of work and coordination that goes into passing a bill. Politicians belong to different parties and everyone has their self interests no matter if it’s supporting their own party interest or to poll well in their next local election. This means that oftentimes the best crafted out bills have to be watered down from giving out concessions to convince senators, especially from opposing parties, to support the bill. It speaks not only to the US political system, as it’s just a microcosm of society, where people can prioritize their self-interest over public interest.

The filibuster is a powerful legislative device in the United States Senate. Senate rules permit a senator or senators to speak for as long as they wish and on any topic they choose, unless “three-fifths of the Senators duly chosen and sworn” bring debate to a close by invoking cloture under Senate Rule XXII.

I couldn’t believe it when I read about filibuster. A method where you never end your side of the debate to delay or entirely prevent a decision from being made. Talking endlessly in order to prevent an unfavourable outcome sounds immature especially in politics when the stakes are so high. Obama went in depth on how his team needed to give out concessions to senators in order to gain their support. This shows the difficulty in crafting a bill and that securing votes is just as important especially when filibuster is taken into account.

Obama talked extensively about the sacrifice his family had to make to support his political career. In a marriage, responsibilities are often divided where one person works and the other takes care of the family. It’s important to know that both roles are vital to a family and that staying at home shouldn’t be valued any less than the role of providing for the family. In fact, the person staying at home is usually the one making the bigger sacrifice and should be valued and appreciated. When your partner or parent is the president of the United States, you instantly lost the normalcy you are accustomed to, you have to relocate and travel to support political campaigns, and you might need to give up your career goals.

I throughly enjoyed A Promised Land by Barack Obama. Books like this which gives me a unique perspective and experience always rank high on my list. Obama provides a lot of details which can at times appear dragged out but it also helps paint a clearer picture of the lifestyle of the first family of the United States. I’m looking forward to the second volume of the memoir and will also be picking up Becoming by Michelle Obama.

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1984 by George Orwell

Whenever a conversation at work mentioned 1984, it seemed like a novel was always brought up and an understanding was shared among the people who got the reference. Although I tend not to read fiction, there came a time when I decided to add it to my reading list despite knowing as much about the book as its title can possibly suggest.

1984 by George Orwell takes place in a dystopian setting where the Party, a totalitarian government led by the Big Brother, closely monitors everyone’s actions and demands complete loyalty.

There is the Ministry of Truth, which rather than upholding the truth, dictates what the truth is. This is achieved by the constant rewriting and falsifying of past records to serve the Party. The ministry also created a new language, Newspeak, to limit the thoughts that can possibly be expressed. One of the words introduced is doublethink, which is the practice of believing in contradicting statements while forgetting that the contradiction exists. The truth is constantly changing and any level of questioning can quickly caused your entire existence to be erased.

The Party eliminates any rebellious thoughts through the Ministry of Love. It instills love to the Big Brother through mass surveillance, fear, and torture. The Thought Police are the secret police who discovers and punishes thoughts unapproved by the Party. People who show any level of opposition through their actions, words, facial expressions, or even what was said in their dreams are brought to the Ministry of Love where they’ll learn to love the Big Brother.

Winston Smith, who works for the Ministry of Truth, is not contempt with the current way of living. Although Winston is adept at conforming outwardly to appear loyal to the Party, his rebellious desire grows with each passing day.

Julia, who also works for the Ministry of Truth, confessed her love to Winston in secrecy one day. They quickly became lovers and would spend time together out of the view of surveillance. Winston and Julia agreed that when they get caught, there’s one thing the Party can’t take away from them, which is their love towards each other.

There are stories about a secret organization called the Brotherhood whose focus is to take down the Party. O’Brien, an inner member of the Party, was believed by Winston to be working for the Brotherhood. Winston’s suspicious appears to be validated when O’Brien asked Winston and Julia the sacrifice they are willing to make to overthrow the Party.

Winston and Julia continued to meet up in their hiding place until one day when they got caught by the Thought Police. To Winston’s surprise, the person who disciplines him is O’Brien. O’Brien then carried out physical and mental tortures on Winston. The goal is not to extract information, which Winston had already given all up, but to completely remove any thoughts against the Party. Even though Winston was able to stick with his beliefs during the initial torturing, he finally betrayed his love for Julia when he was brought to Room 101, the dreaded room where you are faced with your deepest fears. Winston was then released before his eventual execution.

Winston and Julia encountered each other one day. They both confessed that they had betrayed each other, which when you do, you don’t feel the same way about the other person. They no longer have feelings for each other and went their separate ways. As Winston was about to get executed, Winston thought to himself that he had finally won the victory over himself. He loved Big Brother.

It’s hard to put into words the feeling of reading 1984. I was expecting Winston to find his way to the Brotherhood and to overthrow the Big Brother. However, there came a time when I realized that there is no way out. It makes you ponder what can happen if a group of intelligent people with a pure pursuit of power has the technology and resource to perform mass surveillance on the public.

I’m still amazed at George Orwell’s ability to provide such in depth details on how a dystopian world with a totalitarian government will look like. Contrary to the usual endings where the protagonist will achieve certain level of victory, an ending of complete defeat of the protagonist’s character is not only thrilling for the readers but also fitting for the dystopian setting.