New Years' Book Recommendations: Action Selection

In this post, I will summarize a list of books that I included on my Amazon list for beginners interested in the themes of my philosophy, and include some into which I divulged since then and thoroughly enjoyed.

Although I admit there may be scholars of a certain predisposition across the Internet and print media who have a more comprehensive list of books that provide a generally helpful perspective on the struggles of ordinary 'modern' life, this is my selection, and I will only include that which I know I can recommend, for it has proven helpful in my own personal ponderings.

My two favourite fiction books are currently Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov as well as Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes.

I have been a lifetime fan of Nabokov's work and biography, and consider him to be a heavy inspiration to my literary style. Although I consider 'Ada, or Andor' to be one of his more thorough works which can serve his life's career better justice and paint a better picture than 'Lolita', the latter is still one of my all time favourites due to its heavy symbolism, nomenclature, self-reflection and the mannerisms that accompany styling such a heavy, albeit partly ficticious, topic.

But, what about Flowers for Algernon? This novel, to which I was introduced by my eight grade advanced language arts teacher, is perhaps one of the most original works in English out there. It depicts a first-hand account of a heavily mentally challenged man by the name of Charlie Gordon, from his first few journals where he can barely write, towards the peak of his philosophical and misanthropic musings as he undergoes a psychiatric-neurological operation to increase his level of intelligence.

To spoil this book, the mouse upon which the experiment was first successfully tested prior to Gordon's operation (nicknamed 'Algernon', as the title suggests) dies midway through, sparking fear in Gordon that he will eventually meet this fate as well, but ultimately ending in an inconclusive and melancholic spiral downwards that leaves him mute, memoryless and unable to write more. Along with Lolita, I consider it one of the saddest works I have yet read. This is, in my mind, another word for 'the best'. Nevertheless, below are some more notable entries.

Fiction:

1. The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick (The Amazon Prime series never managed to do this one proper justice, aside from cinematically and by depicting a complex relationship between father and son)
2. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick (Bladerunner continues to be one of my favorite films plot-wise)
3. The Way of the Superior Man: A Spiritual Guide to Mastering the Challenges of Women, Work, and Sexual Desire (20th Anniversary Edition) by David Deida (Teaches the spiritual intricacies of sex better than any talk with your parents ever could)
4. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess (I found it scary how much I related to the protagonist here when I first read it for my senior-year English project)
5. Fight Club: A Novel by Chuck Palahniuk (Fond memories of listening to this on a trip throughout Northern Europe)
6. No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai, Donald Keene (Passage about women particularly applicable)
7. The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger (He's me, although nothing in this book made me violently inclined towards John Lennon)
8. Diary of an Oxygen Thief (1) (The Oxygen Thief Diaries) by Anonymous (Good that he kept it anonymous)
9. American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis
10. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky, Constance Garnett (I still don't understand all of it)
11. The Rebel: An Essay on Man in Revolt by Albert Camus
12. The Myth of Sisyphus (Vintage International) by Albert Camus
13. The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
14. Ada or Ardor by Vladimir Nabokov
15. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas (Could've been shorter, although the same can be said for a certain book named paradigm something)
16. Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes
17. White Fang by Jack London
18. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
19. Drive by Daniel H. Pink (I particularly liked his jacket in the film)
20. Harassment Architecture by Mike Ma (Do not read if you are socially liberal)

Non-Fiction:

1. Revolt Against the Modern World by Julius Evola
2. The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich by Timothy Ferriss
3. The Millionaire Fastlane: Crack the Code to Wealth and Live Rich for a Lifetime by MJ DeMarco
4. How to Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie
5. The Art Of War by Sun Tzu
6. The Way of Men by Jack Donovan
7. The Art of Seduction by Robert Greene
8. The Menu by Aaron Clarey (This is pretty essential if you're a man, though Clarey made a 'Womens' Menu' for those seeking alternative lifestyle advice from the general mainstream, which has continued to fail us throughout decades of modernization)
9. The Unplugged Alpha by Richard Cooper
10. Caligula by Stephen Dando-Collins
11. The Death of Cool by Gavin McInnes
12. Think and Grow Rich: The Landmark Bestseller Now Revised and Updated for the 21st Century (Think and Grow Rich Series) by Napoleon Hill, Arthur R. Pell
13. The Psychology of Selling: Increase Your Sales Faster and Easier Than You Ever Thought Possible by Brian Tracy, Gildan Media, LLC
14. Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James Clear, Penguin Audio
15. Can't Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds by David Goggins
16. No More Mr Nice Guy: A Proven Plan for Getting What You Want in Love, Sex, and Life by Robert A. Glover
17. Meditations: A New Translation by Marcus Aurelius, Gregory Hays
18. The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene
19. The Way of Men by Jack Donovan
20. The Unplugged Alpha by Richard Cooper
21. 12 Rules for Life by Jordan B. Peterson (I heavily disagree with Peterson on the Israel issue, among others, but the book still has merit)
22. The Death of Cool by Gavin McInnes (Same goes for McInnes, although I like him much more, he seems rather tough-minded which I heavily envy)
23. Trauma and Memory by Peter A. Levine
24. The Age of Napoleon by J. Christopher Herold
25. Psychological Types by Carl Jung
26. Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl
27. Hard Times Create Strong Men by Stefan Aarnio
28. The Psychology of Totalitarianism by Mattias Desmet

Reflections on 'Paradigm Shift'

My debut novel entitled 'Paradigm Shift' reached the shelves of bookstores in a publishing arrangement with Barnes & Noble roughly thirteen months ago. Judging by the fact it has nearly been a year since this has happened, I have had plenty of time to reflect on the publication.

It strikes me as confusing that the book has not yet been reviewed by any professional services or publications with how widespread its influence has become, as I've gotten many people around the world writing to me about my book after an initial few interviews, book fairs and conferences which I had the pleasure to attend shortly after finishing high school, as a then-acclaimed '17 year old author'. It also strikes me as concerning that it only took thirteen months for me to notice just how many inadequacies there were with the book.

I have no complaints about the plot, although I greatly and frequently considered releasing a graphic novel, follow-up book, a form of prequel or sequel or a reabridged/reimagined version that would be a more concice version of the original 'Paradigm Shift' that I released through both Amazon and in the Barnes & Noble publishing deal.

With that said, my complaints (addressed mostly to myself) have to do with the sheer length of the gigantic manuscript which I presented to both my editor and publishing query, and the inadequacy of certain grammar rules as well as the flexibility I imparted upon myself with the book's spelling.

My style of writing has greatly changed since I have published Paradigm Shift, not only thanks to high school English classes, clearly all taught my geniuses with their respective all-mighty bachelor's degrees from prestigious universities with acceptance rates in the high nineties and many disinterested students, but due to some other, non-sequential matters.

It has been influenced by my frequent use of AI-powered writing innovations that I utilize for anything non-work related, such as e-mails, scripts written for information, tweets, information summaries etc. that I can later retort and requote, which I nevertheless don't use for personal matters such as blogging.

But not only that, it has changed in shape and structure to adapt to the rot of modernity through the past several months, as we witnessed a number of historic events unfold before us. It is worthy to note that Paradigm Shift was published just a month or so after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation, and roughly a year before the escalation of the Israeli-Palestine conflict, which covers the landscape of the news today. 'Paradigm Shift' did not halt me from finishing high school and graduating as one of the last in my class.

It did not halt me from publishing 'No Brakes' as a follow-up that October, likely to just brag about it on my then active Instagram page, which I have since retired in favor of new ones. And moreover, it did not halt me from all that has happened in my life since then, including the insights I have been keen to draw from that paragraph by Nietzsche or some other book by Evola. Exchanging my thoughts with more of the European folk, rather than the archetypical American audience dulled by the pleasures of consumerism to a higher degree than my 'compatriots' back on the ancestral continent of the Old World, has particularly influenced how I choose to address and perceive myself. I no longer hold the arrogance that I steadfastly held from ages fifteen to seventeen, when I was, by all accounts, just a young kid trying to make sense of the world through fiction.

'No Brakes', my arguably more profound and sensical work, thanks to the brilliant editorial job done on it by Jamie Stangroom at my personal request, has left more of a legacy for me than 'Paradigm Shift' in the short term, although its physical presence is lackluster to its non-connected predecessor. I must now reflect that although worldbuilding is a fun and joyous passion, we live in times where I must draw insight from that which is real, which is perhaps why 'No Brakes' sold so well among those willing to read those recollections on modern society through a neo-traditionalist lens, whether these people be among those of our rank (writers, authors, poets), or not.

I must remark at this point that 'No Brakes' has sold particularly well in the United Kingdom, a fact for which I cannot disguise I am eternally grateful. Recollections on publishing 'Paradigm Shift' have firmly convinced me to keep my work more concise, as in, less than ninety chapters per novel, but perhaps more than one split into two equally segmentally-dull halves as it was in the case of 'No Brakes', and hire editors or use tools to verify correct grammar, whatever the cost may be. No matter how far I run with 'it', as in, the bit, the gig will only suffice me just as long as I remember that English was never my first language, and I must keep whatever is native and classical of it when trying to address my thoughts in a 'proper' way. I hope this reflection wasn't too formal for your liking.