Over boeken, literaire reflecties en het web van literatuur, door Niek de Greef. Werner Herzog, Paul Theroux, V.S. Naipaul en meer. Nederlandse en Engelstalige boeken.

Napoleon Hill and public domain books

I read the already quite old book Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill on the recommendation of several people. Wonderfully relevant still.

The book is public domain and can be read and downloaded from multiple sites. For example https://archive.org/details/NapoleonHillThinkAndGrowRich_201706.

Being interested in public domain books, I thought I’d make a list of sites where you can find public domain books, but of course that already exists: https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/qvq99b/how-to-download-the-books-that-just-entered-the-public-domain, for example.

This Is Marketing

Probably the best, if not at the very least the most enjoyable and readable book on marketing in the Internet age: Seth Godin’s This Is Marketing.

The last page comprises a summary of the book. That is very cool.

Mandatory reading.

Figuring by Maria Popova, on non-conformist up-hill battles

Maria Popova wrote the extraordinary Figuring. It recounts the relationships between thinkers and doers from the 16th through the 20th centuries in a seemingly unfocused way. Beginning with Kepler, continuing to Margaret Fuller. Popova describes the personal and idealistic up-hill battles of these usually rather non-conformist thinkers—a wonderfully addictive book.

Popova has long been writing one of the best blogs in the world: Brainpickings.

Parr – Only Human

A few weeks ago, I ordered it by Only Human, by Martin Parr (the signed version). It arrived in the mail yesterday. An incredibly interesting anthropological work, in addition to the unique aesthetics of Parr’s photographs.

Only Human, by Martin Parr
GB. England. Cornwall. Porthcurno. 2017. Martin Parr
ZIMBABWE. Harare. Royal Harare Golf Club. 1995. Martin Parr