December 2020 theme - Predicting the Future

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December 2020 theme - Predicting the Future

1Familyhistorian
Nov 10, 2020, 2:01 pm

Predicting the Future

It’s a human habit that’s part of our every day life, although when thinking about predicting the future, thoughts of clairvoyants and crystal ball gazers might come to mind. But anyone who looks at the weather forecast is looking at someone’s foretelling of the future. This practice goes further than that, weren’t we just riveted to our screens as predictions about the US election were batted back and forth?

So, the kinds of books that will fit into this theme can vary widely. They can be about clairvoyants and people who saw into the future – Nostradamus anyone? Books about predicting the weather or climate change would also fit. There are many possibilities and it will be interesting to see your choices.

2DeltaQueen50
Nov 11, 2020, 4:09 pm

I have a book that I think will fit both the month's theme, and is appropriate for the Christmas season. Alphabet of Dreams is about a Persian brother and sister who join the three Magi on their trip to Bethlehem. The brother has the gift of prophecy and can share in other people's dreams.

3Familyhistorian
Nov 11, 2020, 6:52 pm

>2 DeltaQueen50: That sounds like a great choice, Judy, one that ticks off two boxes at the same time.

4Tess_W
Nov 12, 2020, 3:23 pm

I have book #3 of Dreamers on my shelf, which is about Joseph who had many dreams which came true. I've read the first two, so this again will kill 2 birds with one stone!

5Familyhistorian
Nov 16, 2020, 6:01 pm

>4 Tess_W: That looks like a good one, Tess.

6cindydavid4
Editado: Nov 24, 2020, 9:36 pm

Think its time for a reread of The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August A little bit of future telling, a lot of reincarnation, and a very interesting spin on time travel

7Familyhistorian
Nov 25, 2020, 1:09 am

>6 cindydavid4: That like it fits the theme well, also like a good mix!

8LibraryCin
Editado: Nov 29, 2020, 10:43 pm

Finally have taken a look to see what's on my tbr that might fit.

Thinking about these two:
The Shock Doctrine / Naomi Klein
Countdown: Our Last, Best Hope for a Future on Earth? / Alan Weisman

ETA: As I look at the length of the hold list at my library for the ebook for Klein's book, looks like it will be Weisman's that I read!

9Familyhistorian
Nov 30, 2020, 1:17 am

>8 LibraryCin: Those two look like good possibilities. You've reminded me that I should make my own pick soon.

10DeltaQueen50
Dic 2, 2020, 12:21 pm

I opened the month with my book that I read for this theme. Alphabet of Dreams by Susan Fletcher is a solid historical story set around the birth of Jesus. I found it an interesting and touching story that was aimed at a YA audience but still enjoyable for adults. It was a great book to kick off the month of December with.

11Familyhistorian
Dic 2, 2020, 8:06 pm

>10 DeltaQueen50: I'm impressed that you already finished a book for the month's theme, Judy.

12cindydavid4
Editado: Dic 3, 2020, 12:07 am

curious case of Benjamin Button really good story but didn't care for the movie

Confessions of Max Tivoli I think is a much better take on the subject.

13Familyhistorian
Dic 4, 2020, 12:10 am

>12 cindydavid4: Will you be reading one of those this month?

14cindydavid4
Dic 4, 2020, 9:33 am

havent decided yet - I have Max Tivoli and The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August One of those for sure

15Familyhistorian
Dic 6, 2020, 1:39 am

>14 cindydavid4: Good luck deciding. I have to decide what I'm going to read as well. When I proposed this theme I was very ambitious. Now, I think I will pick something light to get me through the end of 2020.

16DeltaQueen50
Dic 6, 2020, 10:26 pm

>1 Familyhistorian: I have a number of Christmas theme books lined up for this month and decided to kick off the month with this one. As per usual I have committed myself to too many challenges and need to put my head down and read!

17Familyhistorian
Dic 7, 2020, 1:57 am

>16 DeltaQueen50: I know that feeling of too many challenges, Judy. Mine is currently compounded by too many library holds coming due.

18cindydavid4
Dic 7, 2020, 4:14 am

>15 Familyhistorian: Im going with Tivoli; as much as I love Harry August, Ive reread it enough that Im ready to move on!

19Sweekaar1712
Dic 7, 2020, 4:56 am

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20Familyhistorian
Dic 7, 2020, 12:37 pm

>18 cindydavid4: I hope you enjoy it.

21Familyhistorian
Dic 12, 2020, 1:01 am

I have a few more obvious books lined up for this month’s theme, so I was surprised when I realized that one of my library hold reads fit the bill. There has been a lot of hype about Hamnet or Hamnet & Judith as it is called in Canada, for some unknown reason. Hamnet’s mother, Agnes or Anne depending on which interpretation you go with, can see into the future. She knows what will happen to people, including herself and her husband although she only tells people in a limited way. Still this knowledge is what she uses to guide her life.

22LibraryCin
Dic 13, 2020, 11:15 pm

Countdown: Our Last Best Hope for a Future on Earth / Alan Weisman
3.5 stars

This primarily looks at human overpopulation of our planet. How can we survive? What do we need to do and how do we do it? Weisman looks at different countries, communities, cultures... Some are ones that have promoted large families. In some cases, some countries are reaching or have already reached their limit of what their country or area can realistically support – what have they done/are doing to help with this?

This was interesting, certainly a topic that many consider taboo, but really is one of the biggest issues when it comes to the issues with our planet’s environment (the other one being consumerism... which, of course, is amplified with a larger world population). Have to admit, though, it took a long time for me to read; it did help that a good chunk of it at the end was references.

23MissWatson
Dic 14, 2020, 5:59 am

I have finished On a marché sur la lune because it was mentioned in a documentary about Hergé, how meticulously he researched the subject and how he got nearly everything right before the Soviets put a man into space.

24Familyhistorian
Dic 15, 2020, 12:58 am

>22 LibraryCin: That looks like a serious look at the future. Something that should concern us all.

25Familyhistorian
Dic 15, 2020, 1:00 am

>23 MissWatson: Preparation for space travel is definitely a discipline where predicting what will happen comes into play.

26cindydavid4
Dic 15, 2020, 10:47 am

Time Travelers Wife is one of my favorite sci/fi books and is certainly about telling the future. There are issues with how she sets up her time traveling, and I understand problems people have with it. But I love the characters (cried buckets at the end, both times I read it) and found the plot interesting and the story generally well written. My fav section is when they marry, with all of the past, present and future Henrys popping in and out of the ceremony as needed. Didn't want to see the movie because I suspect I would be really disappointed with it in comparison, but I do recommend the book if you are willing to forgive some hiccups or two

27LibraryCin
Dic 15, 2020, 4:21 pm

28Familyhistorian
Dic 17, 2020, 1:56 pm

>26 cindydavid4: Time travel stories are so good. I'm glad you enjoyed it.

29Familyhistorian
Dic 17, 2020, 1:56 pm

30Familyhistorian
Dic 17, 2020, 1:57 pm

On the lighter side, I read the next for me in the psychic eye mystery series Killer Insight. These books involve the psychic, Abby Cooper, in the investigative end of murder where her insights are welcomed as they often assist police. She unravels clues and also sees into the future although it is sometimes difficult to interpret the metaphors she sees. In this novel the deaths were happening in Abby’s own circle as she was out of town attending the events leading up to a friend’s wedding.

31Familyhistorian
Dic 17, 2020, 1:58 pm

A reminder to everyone to log their reads in this month's Wiki.

32CurrerBell
Dic 18, 2020, 2:55 pm

I just last night finished Angry Weather: Heat Waves, Floods, Storms, and the New Science of Climate Change by Friederike Otto . It's about the new theory of "attribution science" which relies on meteorology, physics, and statistics to determine whether climate change has caused a particular weather event. A great deal of the book focuses on Houston's Hurricane Harvey of 2017.

The goal is to determine whether a particular meteorological catastrophe was caused by climate change and the statistical likelihood that a future such catastrophe(s) can be expected. It's not just a case of demonstrating that some catastrophe was caused by climate change but also whether some catastrophe was not caused by climate change – in which case, if the latter is true, then politicians and government planners may have failed to take sufficient precautions regarding flood-plain planning, dikes, dam controls, and what-have-you.

Fairly short, but it's extremely well documented with endnotes that could be invaluable for academic as well as journalistic researchers. The author is associate director of the Environmental Change Institute, University of Oxford, and an Associate Professor in the Global Climate Science Programme.

Scientifically objective but without being overly dense for the average reader. A definite 5*****. LT reviews have tended to be unfairly harsh. Some want more detailed scientific theory (but this is a book for the general public, detailed statistical mathematics would have turned off the average reader, and there's a lot of endnote documentation for those who want to pursue the subject further). Others complained that the author "jumped around," but the short chapters made the technical discussions more readable. Still others complained that....

Oh well, there's no satisfying some folks.

Highly recommended. There are a couple interesting programs on The Great Courses Plus, Meteorology: An Introduction to the Wonders of the Weather and The Science of Extreme Weather, that Otto's book have stimulated me to take a look at.

For those of you who are not aware, The Great Courses Plus is a companion site to The Great Courses, the latter of which can be rather pricey for individual DVDs. Nearly all of the programs available on The Great Courses, though, are available on The Great Courses Plus in streaming format for just $30 for a three-month subscription – with unlimited viewing! It's a really great deal, and I've already viewed several really excellent courses that usually run for 24 (but sometimes more or fewer) half-hour sessions.

33LibraryCin
Dic 18, 2020, 10:45 pm

>32 CurrerBell: That sounds really interesting! A BB for me!

34Familyhistorian
Dic 20, 2020, 8:27 pm

>32 CurrerBell: That sounds like a very interesting and timely read!

35Tess_W
Dic 22, 2020, 3:06 am

I finished Journey, the book 3/3 of the Biblical Joseph. There were prophetic dreams. I really enjoyed this series by Angela Hunt, one of my favorite authors.

36Familyhistorian
Dic 23, 2020, 1:16 am

>35 Tess_W: An account which includes prophecy sounds like a classical way of predicting the future, Tess.

37cindydavid4
Dic 23, 2020, 1:48 pm

Victoria Schwab, a new to me author a few years ago with her series darker shade of magic has a new one that not only is right up my alley fantasy wise, but rather fits here: The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue Looking forward to getting into it!

38Familyhistorian
Dic 24, 2020, 1:18 am

>37 cindydavid4: Enjoy your read. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue sounds like a good one.

39countrylife
Dic 27, 2020, 5:30 pm

I had a hard time with this one, but finally settled on these, which had elements of history in them.

The Scribe of Siena, Melodie Winawer
Time travel, 21st century New York to 14th century Tuscany and the plague.

To Say Nothing of the Dog, Connie Willis
Time travel, 2057 to WWII and to Victorian times.

40clue
Dic 27, 2020, 6:02 pm

I read a nonfiction book, A Life on Our Planet by David Attenborough and found it to be great.

41cindydavid4
Dic 27, 2020, 6:09 pm

>39 countrylife: oh duh, completely forgot about Willis book~ One of my all time time travel books.

42Familyhistorian
Dic 27, 2020, 6:17 pm

>39 countrylife: >41 cindydavid4: Time travel books are interesting. Talk about knowing what the future will bring but then there is that old caveat that nothing in the past should be changed for fear it has an impact on the future.

43Familyhistorian
Dic 27, 2020, 6:18 pm

>40 clue: The David Attenborough book sounds like a good one. Looks like there is a video of it too.

44cindydavid4
Dic 31, 2020, 11:28 am

someone else thread reminded me of another great time travel book that fits here door into summer Yes it has problems but I love the twists in the story and still think of it when my cats are going door to door in the summer looking for the door into winter!

45Familyhistorian
Dic 31, 2020, 11:04 pm

>44 cindydavid4: Sounds like it fit the challenge and was a good read for you.