Recent Reading

• Eichmann in Jerusalem: A report on the banality of evil, by Hannah Arendt. On the surface, it is a journalist's view of the trial of Adolph Eichmann, who managed the Nazi death camp apparatus during World War II, and was abducted in Argentina in 1960 and brought to Israel for trial. It shocked readers by its premise that Eichmann was clearly quite normal, displaying none of the "evil" expected of him. He was simply a bureaucrat, with a job to do, and problems to solve getting it done. He was always more worried about his career and his relationships with co-workers than with what he was doing.
  "..It would have been very comforting indeed to believe that Eichmann was a monster... The trouble with Eichmann was precisely that so many were like him, and that the many were neither perverted nor sadistic, that they were, and still are, terribly and terrifyingly normal."
• On Bullshit, by Harry G. Frankfurt, A thin pocket-sized book (really an essay) with a massive and profound message. His central point is that, unlike an outright liar, the bullshitter does not care at all whether what he/she says is true or not -- the statement is only made to accomplish some objective. This differs from the liar or truth-teller who both really do care about the truth; one is intentionally saying something true, while the other is intentionally stating something false. The bullshitter is just saying something for effect.
• Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything, by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner. The ideas are Levitt's, and they are both clearly stated and very thought-provoking. He views economics as a set of rewards and punishment to which we respond in our daily lives. He has the numbers to back up a number of claims, such as why teachers help their students cheat on standardized tests, and why most drug dealers aren't really making any money. It's got statistics in it, but it's not about statistics -- it's about how intuition often misleads us. There's a really good description of how baby names are correlated with socio-economic status over time. It's got a few really good case studies that he runs the numbers on, and when you do the math, there are some really surprising results. For example, the chances of a Chicago drug gang member being killed is higher than the chances of a Texas death row inmate being executed! Strongly recommend -- it's a very provocative book.
• To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. In preparation for directing the play in spring 2007, I re-read the novel (which I hadn't read in a very long time). Generations of readers all over the world have praised the book, of course, so I can only add my impressions this time around. The book deserves all the plaudits and more -- everyone should read this book! The story is wonderful -- funny, ironic, tender, deceptively innocent and deeply moving. Lee's ability to evoke the time and place is stunning, even to those of us who live in Alabama and already understand much of its history and culture. It reminds us of the power of the small -- little steps that are taken toward understanding and tolerance.

• My past reading...