Paperback Friends

The second interview on the podcast!

This time, I sit down with the great guy, Oskar Eklin. Oskar coaches people in personal efficiency and productivity.

We all have a limited amount of time and energy each day, so how do we make the most of it? How can you make changes in your life? That’s where Oskar comes in.

As you might know, I’m not the biggest fan of personal development books. The war wages on. But that’s exactly why someone like Oskar is such a welcome guest on the podcast; he brings perspective and great conversation.

We talk about life, books, and Oskar shares his thoughts on the personal development genre. He also recommends a few books, including one that changed his life forever.

Books mentioned in the episode:

• Company of One – Paul Jarvis – 27:52

• Atomic Habits – James Clear – 32:06

• How to Change – Katy Milkman – 34:00

• The Power of Habit – Charles Duhigg – 35:03

• Thinking, Fast and Slow – Daniel Kahneman – 50:35
  ( I accidentally say the wrong book title during the podcast=) )

If you want to find out more about Oskar; you can get in touch with him at LinkedIn, or check out his homepage.

Type: Interview | Books: several see above | Writers: several see above

Why don't I grade the books I review? Do you care? Probably not, but that has never, and will never stop me =)

I have certainly mentioned it before, but here is the Sam Ögren reason (aka, the long answer).

Type: General | Book: N/A | Writer: N/A

I wanted to talk about this, but maybe this would have lent itself much better as a topic of discussion? I mean that is more or less always the case, but I do the usual thing here, and flail about the topic in a pretty clumsy way.

Not a horrible episode, but certainly not my best. It felt a lot cleaner while recording, but then again, they usually do, but I’m surprised how much I did not like listening to this.

Haha, but what a way to introduce an episode? A scathing review of my own episode – classic Ögren ^^

On a more serious note, I will try harder to push myself to a standard you deserve =)

Type: General | Book: N/A | Writer: N/A

Alright, what to say about this episode? Well, it’s another filler. Filler!? Haha, maybe that’s harsh, but we do take a look back at some of the crazy books I’ve reviewed this past year, and there are some fun and very surprising moments.

*IMPORTANT*

This episode features massive spoilers for seven different books, two quick ones in the beginning before we get to the actual list. I will list the books here, and the time stamps so that you can navigate the episode accordingly should you need to.

A face Like Glass: 03:42-05:14

Blood Song: 05:27-07:34

Project Hail Mary: 07:34-10:17

1984: 10:17-12:14

Dark Matter: 12:14-15:09

Nothing but the Night: 15:09-18:37

The End of Eternity: 19:07-27:10

Fin.

Type: General | Book: N/A | Writer: N/A

What to say about this one? It’s good, Andy Weir writes an action-packed adventure about humanity’s last hope in the face of an interplanetary phenomenon.

Strong, realistic writing sadly clashes with odd humor, and a tone I can’t quite wrap my head around. Make no mistake, you will like this novel; I just didn’t love the way the tone clashes against itself.

Type: [Review] | Book: Project Hail Mary | Writer: Andy Weir

Today we are taking a look at Nigel Warburton’s A Little History of Philosophy.

Spoilers, it’s very good at what it does. I’d go as far as to say delightful. Warburton makes what is usually unapproachable, approachable and for all ages. This is no small feat mind you, and why this is such an easy recommend for anyone with even a mild curiosity for the thinking arts.

Hats off to Warburton.

Type: [Review] | Book: A Little History of Philosophy | Writer: Nigel Warburton

This was a really fun episode. You get some classic Ögren here; lots of crazy, and a bit of yelling at bad storytelling, and plot devices.

Your milage may vary ^^

Type: Writing 101 | Book: N/A | Writer: N/A

My war against self-help, popular science and educational books continues. Makes me sound like a pretty bad guy? I jest, but loyal listeners will know the inflexibility of those genres sometimes really ticks me off (like most things tbh).

John Truby writes a decent book to help you become a better writer; mainly for screen writers. He doesn't seem like a bad guy, and there is a decent amount of value here, but there is also a lot of arrogance, and, in my opinion, needlessness.

Type: Review | Book: The Anatomy of Story | Writer: John Truby

Great characters make or break a good story, but what makes a good character, and is there anything we can learn from the books we have read on the podcast?

Join me in episode 36 to find out what makes a great character in fiction =)

Type: Writing 101 | Book: N/A | Writer: N/A

Haha, this one is a bit wierd maybe? It's an episode about how to find new books.

Honestly, I find it quite difficult, or used to. So, I thought I'd share my tips.

All the best!

Type: General | Book: N/A | Writer: N/A