Book Review of "The Club"

Being an avid follower of football (no, I am not going to call it Soccer) and specifically the English Premier League (EPL) for quite a few years, the business aspects of EPL - the most successful sports league in the World - have always intrigued me. So what should an EPL fan do for the summer months between the end of the previous season and the start of the new one? Read a book about the EPL of course! 

“Data shows that EPL is the greatest sports entertainment product in the World. In the span of twenty-five years, the league's clubs have increased their combined value by 10,000 percent!”

“The Club” is a fascinating & truly captivating story of anything and everything EPL. Of course, if you are not a fan of EPL, this book is clearly Not for you. The history of EPL’s formation, how a few 30-something investors worked together and competed together to create the most commercially successful sports league is just amazing to read. The original founders might have taken inspiration from the USA’s NFL and the NBA, but they tweaked and tinkered enough things to make EPL uniquely British and still the most Internationally impactful league ever. 

The book has enough new and behind-closed-doors information to fascinate long term fans of English football while the tone and the details are accessible enough for casual fans as well. There are definitely some stories that I would have liked to dig deeper and would have liked to know more, but is not a dealbreaker. 

The book however is not perfect. There are 2 glaring issues. First is that the Audiobook narration is horrible. I switched to the kindle version and never looked back. Secondly, there are unnecessary time jumps that don’t really add any value and are just a nuisance.

Overall though - highly recommend this book if you are an EPL fan and are interested in business aspects of a sports league. 

“The EPL business, ultimately, embodies the challenges of globalization, of the push and pull between expansion and identity, about the universalization of a product that is steeped in decidedly local customs.”

Book Review of "The End of Eternity"

“Any system like Eternity, which allows people to choose their own future, will end by choosing safety and mediocrity, and in such a Reality the stars are out of reach.”

The level of creativity in Isaac Asimov’s ‘The End of Eternity’ is remarkable. What makes it even more fantastic is when you realize that this was published close to 70 years ago! 

But like so many other Asimov novels, this book is dry with absolutely threadbare character development. The factual narrative takes complete center stage - which might not be everyone’s cup of tea. Definitely enjoyable if you know what you are getting into, ⅘ from me.

“Out of danger and restless insecurity comes the force that pushes mankind to newer and loftier conquests.”

Book Review of "Born a Crime"

“Success is an answer, failure is an answer, rejection is also an answer. But regret, regret is just an eternal question you will never have the answer to - ‘What if’ and ‘If only . . .’ “

“Born A Crime” turned out to be funny, entertaining and insightful! I admit I did not expect to get pulled in emotionally into Trevor Noah’s story, but boy was I wrong. The audiobook, narrated by Trevor Noah himself, is a mini emotional rollercoaster ride covering the institutionalized racism that was the Apartheid and the effect it had on a biracial, curious boy growing up in South Africa. 

When it comes to Trevor Noah, I have been through the usual stages of being a fan. Started off being a bit apprehensive and judgy when it was announced that he’ll be replacing John Stewart back in 2015. Then from being pleasantly surprised to slowly becoming a closeted fan of his take on the Daily Show and finally attending his live show and enjoying it thoroughly. 

Give this book a try whether you are a Trevor Noah fan or not, you won’t be disappointed.

“My mother raised me like a white kid—not white culturally, but in the sense of believing that the world was my oyster, that I should speak up for myself, that my ideas and thoughts and decisions mattered.”

Book Review of "The Paper Menagerie"

“Judging was the luxury of those who did not need to survive.”

Before reading “The Paper Menagerie”, I only knew Ken Liu as the guy who translated the Three Body Problem - one of my favorite SciFi novels - from Mandarin to English. It turns out that not only is he a brilliant original story crafter himself, but also has an amazing range as a writer. The stories in “The Paper Menagerie” are beautiful, surreal, deeply moving and range from your typical SciFi stories to surprisingly profound and sometimes even gruesome. Highly recommend it if you are a fan of the genre.

“We have been wrong to be drunk and asleep. We should be drunk and fighting.”

Book Review of "A Brief History of Time"

Even though I found “A Brief History of Time” by Stephen Hawking to be fascinating and filled with multiple jaw-dropping “wait what!” moments, it is not an easy book to read. Especially the chapters about string theory and quantum mechanics made my brain wonky and I had to re-read some portions to somewhat wrap my mind around it (and I am sure I have still missed some key points). Full disclosure, don't expect a casual, bed-side read, but definitely enjoyable if you are ready to put in some work.