'Trick Mirror: Reflections on Self-Delusion' by Jia Tolentino

Trick Mirror: Reflections on Self-Delusion by Jia Tolentino

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Have I read anything else from this author? No

Was this book enjoyable? I got a little bored with the reality TV essay, but then the essay about drugs and religion won we right back. It's really a beautiful essay; if you only read one chapter of the book, read the religion/drugs one.

Did I learn anything new from this book? I don't know that I necessarily learned any new information from these essays, but they were certainly thought-provoking and shone a different light on a number of topics.

Where did I get this book? I borrowed this audiobook from my local library using the Libby app.

Do I recommend this book to other readers? Yes, I think this collection of essays will be interesting to anyone in the Millennial generation or older. People younger than young Millennials, it might not seem that relevant to you yet.

'Medallion Status: True Stories from Secret Rooms' by John Hodgman

Medallion Status: True Stories from Secret Rooms by John Hodgman

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Have I read anything else from this author? Yes, I read Vacationland: True Stories from Painful Beaches last year.

Was this book better than this author's other book(s)? I thought Vacationland was hilarious, and this is very much in the same vein. If you liked one, you'll like the other.

Was this book enjoyable? Very much so. I laughed out loud at several points, and at other points, I didn't laugh but I did say the word "Ha." Which I do sometimes when I'm amused by a particularly pointed sarcasm.

Did I learn anything new from this book? I learned that life in a small Maine town isn't necessarily accurately portrayed in the novels of Stephen King. And that John Hodgman has a cordial relationship with E.B. White's grandson.

Where did I get this book? I borrowed it from my local library using the Libby app.

Do I recommend this book to other readers? Yes, if they have a sense of humor.

New Essays From Peg Tittle: 'No End to Shit That Pisses Me Off'

War rape, profit, baby androids, tax exemptions for churches, make-up, having kids, assisted suicide, abortion, grades inflation, littering, business ethics…

Canadian popular philosopher Peg Tittle is back with a fourth volume in her thought-provoking series of rhetorical questions and answers. Volume three, Still More Shit That Pisses Me Off, tackled pregnant men, paying stay-at-home moms, advertising, income tax deductions, people skills, boy books, speech codes, porn, god, testicular battery and tranquilizer guns, the Academy Awards, intelligent design and evolution.

You may have read Tittle's essay "What's Wrong With Mr. and Ms.?" here at Pagan Spirits. In it, she addressed the issues associated with using gendered language as part of a person's formal address of title, which is essentially part of person's name. This essay appears in Tittle's original book Shit That Pisses Me Off. You can also read about her second book here. 

"Philosophy with an attitude. Because the unexamined life is dangerous."

Available for $1.99 in various e-formats:

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Amazon (UK)

kobo

ibook

She has written Critical Thinking: An Appeal to Reason (Routledge, 2011), What If…Collected Thought Experiments in Philosophy (Longman, 2005), ShouldParents be Licensed? Debating the Issues (Prometheus, 2004), Ethical Issues in Business: Inquiries, Cases, and Readings (Broadview, 2000). She also contributed the Ethics unit to the high school philosophy text, Philosophy: Questions and Theories (McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 2003). Her papers have appeared in Free Inquiry, Sexuality & Culture: an interdisciplinary journal, The International Journal of Applied Philosophy, and Philosophy in a Contemporary World and have been anthologized in At Issue: Is Parenthood a Right or a Privilege? and Current Controversies: Child Abuse.

She was a columnist for The Philosopher Magazine’s online philosophy café for eight years and for Philosophy Now for two years. Her columns have also been published and posted in and at the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies website, Transhumanity.net, Humanist in Canada , Links, Academic Exchange Quarterly, Inroads, The Nugget, Canadian HR Reporter, Elenchus, Teaching and Learning Literature, University Affairs, South Australian Humanist Post, Forum, and The Humanist.

She has served on the ethics committee of the North Bay General Hospital and has had a number of positions in the education, social services, and recreation fields. She has also worked in maintenance and as a disc jockey.

From TeachPhilosophy's 10 Definitions of Critical Thinking: “Judicious reasoning about what to believe and, therefore, what to do (Peg Tittle).”