Not the most groundbreaking book I have ever read, particularly not for Thomas Sowell. Usually Sowell’s books are dripping with profound insights on every line. But given I love him as an author it was great to read about his background and personal experience. He had a very colourful and unique life, filled with pain … More A Personal Odyssey by Thomas Sowell
I have never read a book as physically beautiful as this. Each page was decorated with a unique motif by Boris Artzybasheff and a single Tagore poem. Artzybasheff’s art complements Tragore’s intimate connection between human experience and nature. It was a pleasure to page through and dwell on the poems that really hit the mark. … More Fireflies by Rabindranath Tagore
I am constantly buffeted by my thinking mind, which is both a great source of joy and pain as it creates stories to amplify each life experience. I use all the techniques in my armoury shorten the pain/struggle so that I can attempt to be a better person to myself and those around me. Reading … More Living Beautifully by Pema Chodran
A wonderfully captivating and truly depressing book - it is clear why this is a literary great. John Steinbeck describes the journey of the Joad family from Oklahoma to California during the dust bowl of the great depression. Despair drips heavily off every page and Steinbeck captures the emotions skillfully. One technique was the naïve … More The Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
Some books are like a friend sitting on next to your bedside table. They soothe you each night as you go to sleep and smile at you in the morning when you wake. They provide words of wisdom and encouragement but also push you forward confidently into the unknown future. Anam Cara is one of … More Anam Cara by John O’Donohue
It was great to read a history book and learn about the importance of electricity as a transformative technology through the ages. It is amazing that electricity was pretty much non-existent before the 1880s but it became widely used in the US by the 1930s, which just shows how quickly a revolutionary technology can spread … More The Empires of Light by Jill Jonnes
There is immense value in the broader crypto ecosystem of decentralised financial technologies but the bright shiny lights of the fastest appreciating token also pose a risk. Desire to beat the market can distract us. Bitcoin remains the most important asset in the ecosystem because of its resilience to external attack. Bitcoin is a reserve … More SM (ed. 15) Bitcoin is the Reserve Asset of Crypto
A personal note / book review In recent years I have become acutely aware of my internal critic. You might not see it from the outside, but I often ask myself questions like “Am I smart enough? Successful enough? Rich enough?” I may not say it, but I randomly compare myself vs. friends and acquaintances. … More Meditating through self-doubt
Great to contrast bitcoin’s humble beginnings on a cypherpunk mailing list vs. the institutionally investable $1tn network today. Or perhaps we can contrast the collaborative atmosphere of the early contributors vs. the tribal warfare waged on twitter today. While many things have changed, many have not. Bitcoin scaling, transaction fees, privacy and numerous other topics … More The Book of Satoshi
I’ve followed Jawad on twitter for years but engaged with his material infrequently until 2020. What can I say, there’s a lot of content on twitter and my attention was drawn elsewhere in the past… Through 2020 I’ve been acutely drawn to this work and I loved reading Stray Reflections. It’s not really a personal … More Stray Reflections by Jawad Mian
Sound Money 