christianreader | Sarah's September Reads

The Science of Interstellar by Kip S. Thorne
An unusual read for me, because I don't have a very scientific mind, to put it mildly, much less a theoretical physicist's mind. But my husband's been really into the movie Interstellar in recent months, and after watching it for the third time with him and a friend, I decided I wouldn't mind reading up a bit on the science behind the film (black holes! warped time! gravitational anomalies!). This book was written by Thorne, the science adviser for the movie, for a popular level audience, but it was still close to being over my head many times. I appreciated that he labeled each section to indicate whether the content is considered to be scientific fact, educated guesswork, or speculation.

Histories and Fallacies: Problems Faced in the Writing of History by Carl R. Trueman
This was much more my speed--in fact, I'd read it five years ago and felt it was time for a refresher. Trueman gives lots of examples of pitfalls that all historians need to be wary of, such as anachronism, category confusion, aesthetic fallacy, and more. Most helpful to me was his argument that objectivity isn't the same as being "unbiased" -- as if that were possible; rather, "objective" history rests on evidence that is available to and assessable by others. More dry than his other books, but still surprisingly readable.

The Mind Has Mountains: Reflections on Society and Psychiatry by Paul R. McHugh
A collection of essays by a noted psychiatrist, often expressing views that dissent from the academic establishment. I skimmed some of these, but appreciated his pieces on euthanasia and faddish therapeutic practices.

September total: 3
No fiction this month...looking to fix that (and work in some lighter material!) in October.