I”m sure I read Raspberry Pi Cookbook right after or during my RetroPi build. I had a great time building that. The girls still ask to play it and I like to play it when I have time too. This was a very thorough book and covered things more professionally than the other Raspberry Pi books that I picked up from the library.
This got 4 our of 5 stars from me mostly because of again of the professionalism of the writing and how polished the book is compared to those other books that look very much slapped together. Since building that first project I’ve also created a digital frame, that tells me what time it is and the weather, etc. It’s a nice build to have above my other monitors.
I also plan on building another one with a camera in it. I hope to have that one built early next year if Santa is good to me! This is a good book to have while you are building your first Raspberry Pi project. Not sure if you need to buy it though, I think this is more of a rent, as I doubt you will need it again.
Full disclosure: I met Andy Walker and Sean Carruthers a long time ago at one the first podcast conventions. It was an absolute pleasure. They even treated me to lunch. Andy sent me a copy of this book himself. Having said all that my review of this book is my own.
Who should read this book? As the authors themselves say “…there’s a good chance you’re interested in ways to use science to make life better for yourself and your offspring…”
The authors of Super You are Andy Walker, known technology journalist, tv and radio personality, and podcaster. You may know him from Call for Help, a tech television show he starred on with Leo Laporte. Andy writes this book with co-authors Kay Walker, his wife and Sean Carruthers, a long-time friend, and partner in many of his endeavors.
I enjoyed watching their many videos on youtube and listening to their podcast. Even watching their tv shows back when ZDTV or TechTV was still a channel. Speaking about podcasts, check out this interview about the book from Triangulation one of Leo’s many podcasts.
Back to the book. The chapters are mostly about how you can improve yourself through technology for the first portion of the book. Altering the genes of your baby before it is born to make sure you have a boy with blue eyes. The book moves on to discuss beauty hacks like plastic surgery and a few people who are injecting themselves with RFID chips.
Most interesting to me was the bit about living longer through technology and how that is about 30 years away. What happens in 30ish years? By then, the authors say, we should have access to the technology to extend our lives by double what people are living now. It shouldn’t be a stretch to live past 100 if you are younger than the baby-boomer generation.
That’s all great, but will it really happen? And what do we do to ensure that we make it that last 30-year stretch? The book speaks to both of these questions. I suggest you read it, with a glass of red wine, you’ll see why after you read the book! Enjoy!
The Lost Hero is the first book in a series from Rick Riordan. It is a spin-off series from the original Percy Jackson and The Olympian series. There are 5 books in the series. This book reads very much like the books in the Percy Jackson series and for me, this is a very good thing. I liked that series a lot. A lot of action all the time and it is funny as well. This book was a great introduction to a new series. We meet all new heroes but still get to check-in with some of our favorites from the Percy Jackson series. Riordan makes some great calls in writing this new series. I’m hooked.
This is the first book in a series of 6 books by Ursula K. Le Guin. She is an awesome science fiction writer. Not too long ago I reviewed The Lathe of Heaven, another excellent book. I listened to this book and had a hard time pausing it when life got in the way. Just a great story that is very original. Lots of adventure and magic. I can’t wait to read the second book.
Another Dalai Lama book! So this co-author on this one is Shefali Tsabary, who also wrote The Awakened Family which is a New York Times Best Seller and was a book endorsed by Oprah. “Parents . . . you will be wowed and awed by [Dr. Shefali].” —Oprah Winfrey The Conscious Parent won the Nautilus award in 2011. I would recommend this book to any parent. I found it very helpful and trying to slow down and remember that my kids are going to remember things that I don’t think are a big deal. Every time I lose it my kids will remember that and it will go into the idea of who I am in their eyes. I highlighted substantially in this book. Here are some lines I think are worth sharing:
perfection is an ideal of the foolish.
when we are in the grip of anger, we are anything but in control. We are prisoners of ego.
“It’s okay to be bored. There’s nothing wrong with feeling bored. Keep being bored.”
On weekends, my daughter is allowed an hour of television or an hour on the computer.
Not that they will blindly follow your dictates, but that they will seek your counsel
[to our children] I learn how to be a better person from you.
truly hearing what they are saying, without feeling we have to fix, correct, or lecture.
The smallest, “I don’t know, but let’s find out together,” has the power to evoke the most profound of life qualities.
we often don’t take the time or exercise the patience required to get at the why,
For a young child, times to nap and go to bed are aspects of the main rules and as such are non-negotiable.
If the parent is resolute, the child will quickly pick up that there is no argument around this issue.
The traditional dynamic of parent-versus-child would yield to the realization that our children are often wiser than us and able to advance us spiritually just as effectively as we can advance them.
I know that’s a lot but, I thought every one of them was worth sharing. The highest praise I can give a book is buying extra copies to give other people. This is a book that I can defiantly think of buying extra copies for friends and family.
This is a tough review. I really like the story in the jacket sleeve of this. Actually, that was sent to me from the publisher and I liked it so much I requested a copy of the book. When it came I was excited to start it, but as I read I lost interest in the story. IT started out okay, but it kept going on subjects it needed to just move on with. This is another book that it took me a very long time to get through. I kept putting it down to read something else. However, since I hate leaving a book unfinished, I picked it up when I could. 5 months passed and I finally had it done. I gave it 2 stars. I think this book had potential, but it didn’t execute. What makes this review tough is I asked for this book and I don’t want to give it a poor review, but I have. I’m the only reviewer of this book on good reads and the poor thing has a 2-star rating. I hope others will review this book, but I can recommend it.
I like Star Trek. You could even call me a Treky. I really liked the Enterprise tv show. I have watched it on Netflix from start to finish in addition to seeing it live when the show was still airing. I can watch those episodes over and over. When the show was pulled I was bummed. The world without a Star Trek series currently on air makes me sad. I hope it someday makes its way back on the air. In the meantime, there are always books! I started reading the Star Trek Enterprise series back in 2013. The books feel real comfortable to me. Probably because I have watched all the series from the original to Enterprise. I have not read a book in the series that I hated. I’ve read some that I particularly care for, but I wouldn’t call it a waste of time.
The Last Full Measure follows along the story from the original episode when the show was still on. Therefore, I like this one a little less because I already know the story. Having said that I still enjoyed my time reading this book in the series. If you are reading the series and don’t want to read the books that are also an episode you can skip this one. If like me, you enjoy all the Star Trek you can get, this book is a good addition to the ongoing series. I’m looking forward to the next book.
Ursula K. Le Giun is the woman! She is an amazing weaver of science fiction stories. She will completely immerse you in her stories and make you believe the unbelievable. I love her work. I recently finished the first Earthsea book and I can’t wait to read the rest. This book takes you on an incredible journey asking the question what if what you dream came true? At first, if you are like me, you think awesome, all my wishes coming true. Alas, we forget our nightmares. Also, who is to say how your dreams will be interpreted? This is just a fascinating read. Highly recommended.
This is a delightful book! Great prose and a very original idea. One of my favorite books is Beowulf. This is a twist on that story. John Gardner asks us what if Beowulf was told from the monster’s point of view. I don’t want to say much more and ruin this read for you. I really enjoyed this fantastic story and would highly recommend for anyone who is a fan of the original Beowulf. I was delighted to find this book. It’s a short read and you won’t be disappointed. Give it a shot.
This is the first in a series of books that follow some “unfortunate” children along with their sad story. It was written by Lemony Snicket which is the pen name for Daniel Handler. The books are very popular and well read with young readers. So much so that even though there was a movie release in 2004 for these books there is another slated for 2017. For my part, it was not a bad book, but a little too juvenile for me. I think my 8 years old might like them, but they are very sad. So, I have not yet recommended them to her. There are other more inspiring stories for that age set.
