7 Big Bad Wolfs

I bought 7 books from an annual book fair called Big Bad Wolf. Hence the title.

Three of them are fiction. Four are not. This post will summarize each of these books and why I selected them.

Starting from my fiction basket:

1. A Strangeness in my mind - Orhan Pamuk

I bought this for the author: Orhan Pamuk is a legend in modern Turkish literature. The guy is a master at weaving stories imbued with Turkish culture.

Unfortunately my Turkish was never enough to properly enjoy Turkish-language literature. But an English translation is a different story (pun intended). Given my five years in that beautiful country, I believe this novel will be particularly appealing for me to read.

2. Half World - Hiromi Goto

Bought this for the cover. And the outline.

A young girl spirited away to a strange world? Sounds like a certain box office hit anime film. I'm expecting a kaleidoscope of settings, a Louvre gallery of characters, and a meteor shower of feels, all carried by an impeccably developed and multifaceted heroine.

This novel contains illustrations, and it seems to be aimed at teenagers. And its cover exhibits a blended feeling of mystery and drama. But then again, most light novels I loved were similar.

3. The Less You Know The More You Sleep - Juliet Butler

Bought this for my sister. She mentioned it's about conjoined twins in Soviet Russia. And with good reviews.

Different enough from the other two fiction books. And I felt two books wasn't enough. So I bought.

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Why these books?

There were actually a few other fiction books that caught my eye. But a major factor in my choices was my previous year's high consumption of light novels- Modern Japanese* novels with manga/anime tropes and plots.

On the one hand, I disliked mainstream young adult novels written with Western ideas and behavior. On the other hand, I wanted a bit of variety, a change from the type of light novel I usually read: political/military dramas centered around a few intelligent main characters, with logically crafted battle scenes and plots. These three fiction books fit the bill.

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As for the non-fiction books, 3 out of 4 are about business. Having spent the year after university attempting to build a startup and then working full-time in business development under a boss who loves business, this should not be surprising. So in no particular order, the non-fiction set is:

1. Marissa Myer & the Fight to Save Yahoo - Nicholas Carlson

I'm deeply interested in how organizations grow and decline. How leaders and a few key people can either build or destroy through their decisions and character. And the dynamics of how people respond to external changes and internal initiatives.

Yahoo is the perfect example.

How could the company that was known as "The Internet" fade out of existence? It certainly wasn't for lack of trying, at least in Yahoo's last few years.

2. Managing the Older Employee - Casey Hawley

I've always been the youngest. From my classes to my workplace. And frankly speaking, I'm often amongst the top performers.

Thus, it's very likely I will have to manage older people in the future. I've also heard from my colleague his struggle and success in leading senior employees. Whether in a corporate job or my own business, I could use the knowledge in this book.

3. Small Data - Martin Lindstrom

With "Big Data" being so hot nowadays, this title interested me. According to the outline, this book shows how observing little things can give great ideas how to make a product better. Given that I take great pleasure in finding underrated anime or manga (ie, gems in the rock), I hope to do the same for business. This book will help me to spot hidden opportunities that most of the world cannot access from databases.

4. The Wikileaks Files

The book is big, the price tag not so much. That's why I bought the heaviest and only non-business book in this list.

Okay, I admit I'm a fan of unlocking the world's secrets. Having been fascinated by Confessions of the Economic Hitman and seeing how Wikileaks has caused so many headlines in the past decade, I wanted to dig into this infamous trove of info.

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I plan to read and review a book every week or two weeks. Probably will slow down during Ramadan. And the two big books (Wikileaks and Pamuk's novel) will take much longer.

But it's been a while since I bought and read physical books. Now is the time to revive this childhood pasttime that has helped to shape who I am today- a curious observant contemplator.

*Not all light novels are Japanese. But the origin and majority are.