We learn nothing
In We Learn Nothing, satirical cartoonist Tim Kreider turns his funny, brutally honest eye to the dark truths of the human condition, asking big questions about human-sized problems: What if you survive a brush with death and it doesn't change you? Why do we fall in love with people we don't even like? What do you do when a friend becomes obsessed with a political movement and won't let you ignore it? How do you react when someone you've known for years unexpectedly changes genders? Irreverent yet earnest, he shares deeply personal experiences and readily confesses his vices-- betraying his addiction to lovesickness, for example, and the gray area that he sees between the bold romantic gesture and the illegal act of stalking. In these pages, we witness Kreider's tight-knit crew struggle to deal with a pathologically lying friend who won't ask for help. We watch him navigate a fraught relationship with a lonely uncle in jail who--as he degenerates into madness-- continues to plead for the support of his conflicted nephew. And we cringe as he gets outed as a "moby" at a Tea Party rally. In moments like these, we can't help but ask ourselves: How far would we go for our own family members, and when is someone simply too far gone to save? Are there truly "bad people," and if so, should we change them?
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What Hacker News says
- I never heard of Anthony Bourdain until years after he died. I guess I wasn't the right age, I was having a family and at work all day whenever his shows took off. He seems like a genuinely interesting person, but there are so many other interesting thoughtful people that don't have relatable cooking shows and I think Anthony Bourdain, as great as he is, gets quite a bit more attention than he probably warrants. Don't take that the wrong way, he's genuinely thoughtful and interesting, but he gets a LOT of attention OVER AND OVER.
I'll throw out Tim Kreider (author of We Learn Nothing, among other books) as someone else you might find worthwhile to checkout.
- We Learn Nothing by Tim Kreider. Kreider has a a blog on NYT. I liked this post [1] and bought the book. Enjoyed every single page of it. [1] http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/06/15/i-know-what-...
- > "What the author says would be consistent with the self-centered drama queen everyone is assuming the author is, but that's hardly the only interpretation of what she says. Is a little benefit of the doubt to much to ask?"
If you're referring to the author of the linked article, it's a guy. If I may ask, why did you jump to the conclusion it was written by a female?
> "Tim Kreider is the author of “We Learn Nothing,” a collection of essays and cartoons, and the forthcoming essay collection, “I Wrote This Book Because I Love You.”
