Hove Book Group - Meeting Notes (Thursday 30 July 2026)
Theme: California
Choosing: Tristan
Summary: Mixed reactions to Solnit’s broad, essayistic style. While members appreciated the insights into how 19th-century California shaped modern technology and speed, many felt it was overly dense, repetitive, and lacked detail about Eadweard Muybridge's actual character.
Scores and Comments:
Tristan (7/10): Wanted a non-fiction book and got it, though it could have been half the length. Too dense with too much detail, but loved the final chapter pulling together how we accelerate into the future.
Robin (8/10): Broadly liked it. Described it as a collection of science, geography, photography, etc. Felt there was too much repetition and Solnit stayed too long in Nob Hill.
Nigel (6/10): Found it dense, but noted fascinating insights on time/space changes, the Silicon Valley origin story, and cinema. Felt Muybridge was a ghost in his own biography.
Nick (8/10): Fascinating time; San Francisco was quite the place during the 1870s. Found the Stanford relationship pivotal. A lovely, really great book.
Keith (6/10): A good choice. A fascinating time brought alive, though not as taken by the style due to too much detail and repetition.
Hamish (0/10): Found it repetitive, dense, and a struggle. Noted very little detail on Muybridge's character. Neither enjoyed nor appreciated it.
Roland (7/10): Thought-provoking biography looking at tech impacts on space and time. Questioned if Solnit was too reductionist regarding Muybridge's early head injury. Speculation over Roland's unusually succinct and incomplete review
LISTEN: The Rest is History (Episode 61: California)
Summary: Generally low to moderate marks. Members noted it served as an accessible broad-brush introduction to California's rapid historical growth, but found it lacked depth and jumped around too much.
Scores and Comments:
Tristan (5/10): Listens to a lot of episodes and likes it, but found the execution too much. Too much jumping around despite some staggering stats.
Nigel (5/10): Solid companion piece to the book. Covers themes of reinvention, rapid growth, and environmental/indigenous devastation in an accessible format but a poor example of this usually excellent podcast.
Keith (2/10): Doesn't know the podcast and was not impressed. Found it sickening to listen to.
Robin (3/10): Deeply disappointing as they are usually so interesting and authoritative.
Hamish (1/10): Not a fan of podcasts in general. Felt you cannot cover California's history in an hour and found the details scant with annoying adverts.
Nick (4/10): Big fan of the podcast but felt this was not up to the usual standard despite a few interesting insights
WATCH: Nope (2022, Dir. Jordan Peele)
Summary: Strongly divided opinions. Some members praised its ambitious themes on spectacle and monetisation, while others found it silly, disconnected, or nonsense.
Scores and Comments:
Tristan (5/10): A silly film and ridiculous. Found no connection to Solnit's book, sadly. Asked "What was the point?" and was very disappointed.
Nick (9/10): Loved it! Thought it was great. Loved the alien and loved the tree part. Enjoyable for everyone.
Nigel (9/10): Brilliant, genre-bending sci-fi horror spectacle. Appreciated the thematic commentary on collective addiction to monetisation and attention.
Keith (6/10): Thought it was too much nonsense despite being good fun. Initially depressing, but liked the inventiveness.
Robin (2/10): Completely pointless, but had some good elements and a great setup. Complete nonsense.
HBG endorse it: 26 June 2026 - Thursday 30th July 2026
FILM
The Odyssey (Christopher Nolan 2026)
TV
Ann Droid (BBC)
BOOK
Roots, Radicals and Rockers by Billy Bragg
THEATRE
Loves Labours Lost at The Globe
MUSIC
Temptations/Four Tops at Love Supreme
No comments:
Post a Comment