My 10 Favorite Books I've Read in 2023

Book list:

[bajes]

0:30 Book 1: The Next Shift
3:55 Book 2: Minima Moralia
7:10 Book 3: Horror in Architecture
8:50 Book 4: When Nietzsche Wept
10:34 Book 5: How It All Began
12:56 Book 6: Women, The State & Revolution
16:55 Book 7: The Commissariat of Enlightenment
20:00 Book 8: The Philosophy of Sartre
21:10 Book 9: Story of the Eye
22:49 Book 10: On Literature and Art

[nwahally]

Re: Adorno. Despite his depessiveness and negativity I find some of his stuff the most... positive of Marxian-proximate thought. One of his remarks in one of his radio shows I see as the most powerful and most susinct characterization what leftists and socialists must battle against and strife for: "I want nothing other than for the world to be arranged in such a way that people are not its superfluous appendages, but rather that, in God's name, things exist for the sake of people and not people for the sake of the things that they also have have made themselves." If one wants to arrive at the emancipation of humankind, that, to me, is the positive principle to adhere to.

Not to mention some... astonishingly adorable letters about wombats that do fly in the face of Adorno's general reputation.

[PunishedFelix]

I WAS LITERALLY JUST TRYING TO REMEMBER THE STORY OF THE EYE TODAY LOL THANK YOUUU

[dixTheory]

Sebastian Haffner's book on the German revolution of 1918 ended up being one of my favorite books of last year (per your recommendation) so I'll definitely check some of these out again!

[nikolademitri]

I’ll definitely be reading The Next Shift.. it sounds like the story of my hometown, Pittsburgh, and something that might even reflect the history of my family in the area (grandfather was a steelworker, I work in healthcare, etc). I wonder if it talks about UPMC at all? I guess I’ll find out!

[TacoMaro]

What books do you recommend for an intro into the political spectrum of marxism or postmodernism. Im also very taken aback on how profficient you are when it comes to analyzing film. Thank you for uploading these videos.

[username]

Honestly, the history of the communist movement between 1917-1927 is so sad. The civil war in Russia, the failure of the German revolution, Shanghai massacre, the first red scare in the US, fascism in Italy and the eventual rise of Stalinism.

[My-Tubes..O_o]

Hello Jonas, greetings from Åsmund here. I was curious to if you read about the proletarian nature of Anarchims, in the periods that it was like that? I find it hugely inspireing to read Murray Bookchins «The Spanish Anarchists, The heroic years 1868-1936».
It is a romp of a read with many good stories. Abel Paz biagraphy of Durruti was also good and showcases the strict adherrance to proletarian perspectives. Im looking forward to do year one of the Russian Revolution By Victor Serge.
Many thanks

[sorayasafavi]

have you read many books on education?

I am involved in developing the pedagogical theory at an experimental K-12 school, and looking for good books to read and share with my coworkers and students.

thank you!

[ReboursCVT]

10:40 For the subject of left=wing terrorism, I can recommend Direct Action: Memoirs of an Urban Guerrilla by Canadian anarchist Ann Hansen, it is a recount of her experiences before, during and after her involvement in the group Canadian urban guerrilla group Squamish Five

[LilVukie]

Would love some more Deleuze content if you were interested/have the time. Also, what is your opinion on Pierre Bourdieu if you’ve looked into his work much. He’s my second favorite thinker after D&G

[Fenrisson]

That was an extremely interesting list! My year is going to be very busy, but I sure would love to read some of those.

[silver]

Ive been waiting for this for 2 months lets
Im very excited about this one

[wlxlhmk]

*These two texts are required this year for Jonas Ceika & all other intellectuals:*
Against Intellectuals Monopoly, by Michele Boldrin & David K. Levine;
Against Intellectual Property, by Stephan Kinsella.

All types of intellectual property (IP) laws must be fully abolished immediately, in any and all jurisdictions worldwide. All IP laws are extremely unethical for humankind.
As an aside, IP laws were relatively young at Karl Marx’s time. He was unaware of how they worked, so he didn’t address them at all or about how they negatively affect the working class.
Against Intellectual Monopoly is the most informative book humanity has on the subject now. Against Intellectual Property is another incredible essay, but it’s written from a right-libertarian perspective so if you’re leftist like me you’ll have to read with an open mind and extract what’s helpful. _Only_ these two texts are the gold standard when it comes to intellectual property.

[iCirith]

I love "The Story Of The Eye"!

[cataclysm]

I’m glad to see Tendies123 is still a patron after all these years 😂

[supremeoverlord]

Read Nietzsche, the Aristocratic Rebel: Intellectual Biography by Domenico Losurdo

[vintheguy]

Hey cck, sorry to ask, but do you have any recommendations of any theorists of the past 2 years who have written about Mark Fishers works as itll be incredibly relevant as in britain there has undergone a massive resurgence in trade union action and membership which has resulted in an unprecidented level of class struggle in the last 2 years. I still think hes correct and we havent escaped hauntaology and even controversially amoung my associates i dont think we've fully escaped the recuporation of capitalist realism, but i think there is now holes in the impenetrable barrier that is allowing real air to come back in. Wishing for any theorists/writers who have written similar or opposing thoughts on this subject.
Also (last request sorry) but any methods you have of finding such interesting niche modern and historical books/writters? Ive only been able to find some theorists on my own via just relying on internet searches and word of mouth

[chives]

Story of the Eye is my favorite fiction book. The big downside to that is that it's sometimes difficult to recommend to people

[Kelvinian]

Adorno is such a balm. It's so easy to feel that you've gone insane when every direction seems to have the ghost of a better arrangement lurking in its foundations, and Adorno's texts are like an eloquent gesture to the truth of that impression. There's a poem by Hardy from around WW1, 'I Looked Up from My Writing', that brings this sentiment of a kind of shame in being the beneficiary of horrendous massacre abroad that I think brings together a flashpoint of this feeling -- it is, after all, easier to relate this feeling to loud incidence than to a continuous wasting churn, though the latter is the reality -- that I'm sure is active in many of us as the concentrated microcosm of colonial barbarousness that is Israel's genocide in Gaza continues. The last two stanzas of that poem, in which Hardy feels indicted by the full moon:

''And now I am curious to look
Into the blinkered mind
Of one who wants to write a book
In a world of such a kind.'

Her temper overwrought me,
And I edged to shun her view,
For I felt assured she thought me
One who should drown him too.'

Thank you for the video, your material is always very thoughtful and with great breadth.