I've always been of the belief that reading is a really important thing for technologists to do. It centers us on the human voices and experiences that we can lose touch with in our quests to build ever better, faster, stronger technology. Here's to a 2020 filled with more books. If you have a good reading recommendation for me, shoot me a message.
Current books in various states of completion:
City of Girls, by Elizabeth Gilbert
A book that I can only describe as a wild romp through the New York City small theatre scene in 1940. I've always been a theatre nerd, and I love and sometimes miss living in NYC, so this book pushes all the right buttons for me. It's also hilarious and mostly lighthearted, which is something I really need to counterbalance our current political climate.
Support a small, independent book store and buy it here.
Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men, by Caroline Criado Perez
My partner got me this book for Christmas and I'm just starting it, but it promises to be a pretty fascinating dive into the ways in which big data skews the world toward male-centric constructs and values. I'm particularly interested in this after my trip to ODSC last year.
Support a small, independent book store and buy it here.
Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking, by Samin Nosrat
This one was also a gift (from my partner's parents, for my birtday!), and I'm really excited to get through it. I love cooking and do as much of it as I can in my spare time. There's nothing like cooking a great, maybe even slightly fancy meal for friends or family and watching them enjoy something on a visceral level that you've created. This is not so much a conventional cookbook (though it does come with plenty of recipes) as it is an exploration of what makes good cooking good. This book will prepare you to make something out of whatever collection of nothings you might have in your pantry at a moment's notice.
Support a small, independent book store and buy it here.