Book Review: Hoodwinked

Mara Einstein, Hoodwinked: how marketers use the same tactics as cults. Essex, CT: Prometheus Books, 2025. ISBN: 9781493086153. 

Genre: marketing, business

Subgenre: social media, internet, scams

Format: hardcover

Source: Hutchins Library, Berea College 

 

As the subtitle states, this book discusses how marketers use the same tactics as cults. This is very applicable to the Internet and social media, and the author discusses those as well. The author covers four major topics: 

• Cults and marketing. 
• Multilevel marketing. 
• Influencers. 
• Social media extremism.

The author goes through some marketing history and shows how the marketers use the same strategies cults use to draw people in. From there, she moves on to multilevel marketers (MLM), which to be honest, are  basically legalized pyramid schemes. If you think MLM's are things of the past like Tupperware and Amway, read on. MLM's have adapted rather well to our times with new labels and schemes. After that, we learn about social media influencers and their use of cult tactics that go from seemingly benign to outright extreme and toxic. The author at the end of the book does offer some solutions, but these often require willpower that most people just don't have. 

The book is interesting overall. The author approaches the topic incrementally, so it is easy to understand. She combines expertise, research, and testimonials to present their points. An issue with the book is that after the first half or so it gets repetitive. Part of it is that marketers and influencers keep using the same exact techniques. "Why mess with a good thing?" I bet they'd say. 

If you have an interest in marketing, advertising, social media, and/or scams, this may be a book for you. As an information literacy librarian, this book offers lessons about social media, advertising off and online, and its effects on users. The book provides some good material for awareness and to help our patrons. 

This is a book I would recommend for public and academic libraries. For academic libraries, campuses with programs in business and marketing, political science, peace and social justice, and technology may find the book of interest. The book does explain the basics very well with examples. There are also grey information boxes throughout the book for definitions, lists, and additional resources.  

I liked the book overall, but it is one to borrow. It is worth reading it and passing it around. 

4 out of 5 stars. 

 

Additional reading notes: 

 

The best defense to avoid being hoodwinked: 

"The best defense is to learn the fundamental methods for getting people to join these cult-inspired systems, to stay in them, and to recruit others. Only then can we recognize the patterns and stand a chance of identifying them when deployed in the ever-more-automated landscapes in which we are living, working, and making meaning together" (xi). 

 In other words, you need to know your enemy, and they are your enemy. 

 

A tactic of cults is scarcity marketing, "the practice of regularly limiting the supply of products to gin up consumers' fear of missing out" (xv). A good example that comes to mind is the whiskey industry, especially American whiskey and their racket of allocating certain bottles. What the tactic does: 

"Withholding items people want or need and consciously raising their anxiety is what experts call 'systems of control,' an important tactic in the cult tool kit" (xv).

 

The issue of cults and marketers deceiving or at least hoodwinking you: 

"The concern is not that you will be brainwashed into joining a religious group and isolated in some remote country. The issue is that you will be hoodwinked into buying things you don't need or can't afford, or that you will accept extreme ideologies that do not align with who you are. Being vulnerable is predicated on the fact we have come to accept anxiety as our default state of being" (xix-xx). 

And in the Hard Times we now live in, anxiety is pretty much the default setting these days. 

 

On most cult leaders: 

"Most cult leaders are both smart and lazy. I note this because it helps to dispel a prevailing myth: that people pulled into cults are crazy or stupid. This could not be further from the truth. Yes, young people are an important target group because of their vulnerability and because they will do a lot of work, which is necessary to keep the organization going. However, cults want smart, successful, and preferably wealthy  people, because such individuals tend to be good managers and the best form of marketing" (9). 

 

Cults are not just religion: 

"Cults are not only about religion. There are political cults and self-improvement or personal growth cults peddled by online hucksters selling webinars on how anyone can be an entrepreneur" (11). 

 

MLM's dirty underbelly: 

"MLMs are legally sanctioned pyramid schemes: organizations that generate profits by continually recruiting people who are obliged to pay a fee to be part of the organization. Selling the product or service is secondary at best. By design, these companies make tons of cash for the few folks at the top (who get a percentage of sales from everyone below them on the pyramid), while those at the bottom-- 99 percent of members-- earn nothing or even lose money" (14). 

 

A concept to grasp: 

"This is the concept to grasp: our interactions with brands are not about physical products. They are about what we think and feel about the products beyond their physical attribute. They are about what hopes and dreams and voids we want products to fulfill" (21). 

 

The value of influencers to advertisers: 

"The true value of influencers is in their ability to get their followers to buy into what they are selling, whether it is a product or themselves" (108). 

Being an influencer is like any other gig job, so their revenue comes from various sources. Brand deals is usually the main income source. After that it's ad revenue, affiliate links, selling courses, and some from subscriptions and tips (122). However note that for many small influencers best they can hope for is a free product; they are not getting paid for their labor. It can be highly exploitative, but advertisers know plenty of suckers-- microinfluencers or wannabes--  will jump if offered free merchandise to peddle. 

 

The book does explain the basics very well with examples. There are also grey information boxes throughout the book for definitions, lists, and additional resources.  

 

 On social media: 

"Social media companies aid extremism, and they know it. They could very easily change their algorithms, but they don't because it will impact their bottom line" (197). 

Despite social media platforms still growing, the author argues the social media ecosystem is dying, His reasons for arguing that include: 

• "Posting isn't fun anymore." 
• "Influencers are too burnt, too big, or too willing to take a brand deal." 
• "Social media has become second-rate TV."
• "Brands are becoming media channels and subcultures" (201-202). 

The author explains those points, and this part is worth reading and then reflecting on your social media experience. I've been on social media since the early days, and for me I can attest the fun that used to be there is not there anymore. Don't take my word for it. Look at your own experience and see how it is for you. If you feel moved, feel free to come back and comment about your social media experiences. Maybe we can compare notes. 

Two books from the book's bibliography I am adding to my TBR list: 

• Van der Linden, Sander. Foolproof: Why Misinformation Infects our Minds and How to Build Immunity (2023). Published by W.W. Norton. 
• Young, Dannagal Goldthwaite. Wrong: How media, politics, and identity drive our appetite for misinformation (2023). Published by Johns Hopkins Press. 

 

  

 

Book Review: The Internet Con

Cory Doctorow, The Internet Con: How to Seize the Means of Computation. London, UK: Verso Books, 2024. ISBN: 9781804292143.  (link to publisher)

Genre: technology, Internet

Subgenre: social media, corporations, essay

Format: trade paperback

Source: Hutchins Library, Berea College 

 

In this small book, the author explains how major Internet companies became the monopolistic behemoths they are now. He also explains how these large companies manage to hold us hostage, making us stay with them even as we hate them and perhaps hate ourselves for staying. 

One thing I've learned in my years online, especially with social media, is that you have to be willing and ready to move on when a site goes to hell. By now, if I have to leave some people behind, so be it, but as much as possible I am ready to pack and go elsewhere when things get bad. In the book, the author reminds us we have the option to move, and he offers some tools to help make the move less painful. 

The book is organized in two major parts: 

• Part I: Seize the Means of Computation. Here the author explains how the companies get big and how for the most part they stay big due to influence, corruption, and legalized extortion. Add to this governments that are either lazy, clueless, and/or in league with said companies, and it does not leave room for hope. However, where there is a will there is a way, and the author provides some possible solutions. 
• Part II: What About. Here the author addresses possible objections including some corporate excuses not to do the right thing. 

The main concept to understand from the book is that of interoperability. It's the ability of different services to connect with each other and users in different places to interact on common ground. What the book explains: 

• "What interoperability is
• How interoperability works
• How we can get interoperability
• How we can mitigate interoperability's problems" (3). 

Mastodon and the Fediverse embody this pretty well. In simpler terms, this is what allows your GMail to communicate with someone else's Yahoo! email and both to communicate with Outlook Email.  For the most part, services like Facebook are walled prisons keeping users hostage. Once you understand interoperability, it makes sense. The author takes time to explain it, shows why it is important, and worth fighting for. 

The book for the most part is accessible, though there are some passages that may get too technical for some readers. The first part also has some repetitive passages, and it is a bit slow reading at times. The second part is an easy read in contrast to the first part. 

The author strives to give solutions, and points out some positive bits of legislation, but in these Hard Times it is difficult to be optimistic our governments would do anything right that would benefit regular people, less so if those things would displease those big tech companies that often keep those politicians in their pockets through political donations as well as dark money. So in the end, this all sounds great, but I would not hold my breath. What I will keep doing is using and learning more about Mastodon and the Fediverse and other open access options. They may be small and not glamorous, but they are not beholden to Big Tech. 

In the end, this is a good read even if it is not an easy read. It's not easy in the sense many folks may not want to hear the truth. Staying in Big Tech's prisons is easier for many folks than making a liberatory effort. 

Overall, I recommend the book for public and academic libraries. For me, as I am starting some research to craft a social media policy for our library, the book gives me plenty of food for thought. Maybe it will give more folks out there something to think about as well. 

4 out of 5 stars.

 

Additional reading notes: 

Why we need to fix tech: 

"Fixing tech isn't more important than fixing everything else, but unless we fix tech, we can forget about winning any of those other fights" (18). 

 

What is reverse engineering: 

"'Reverse engineering' is a time-honored and important guerrilla tactic in all technological struggles. Its meaning is well captured by its name: reverse engineering takes place when a technologist deeply probes a finished product or service to determine how it works, and also how to change or replicate the way it works" (84).  

 

This book qualifies for the following 2025 Reading Challenge: 

 

 

Some random thoughts on how I get my news

This piece is prompted by two things. One, this report from PEW Research on "how Americans get local political news" and two having read the book Avoiding the News (link to my review). The book is based on a series of interviews the authors did with people who both enjoy following the news as well as people who avoid the news completely. In one of the appendices the book includes the interview questions they used. I decided to use some of the questions to help me reflect on my own news engagement and how I was socialized into reading news and keeping up with news and current events. As the title of this blog post states, these are some random thoughts. Questions from the book are as provided. The replies are my own. 

"What do you see as the most important issues in your life day to day?"

Pretty much making it to the end of another day and hoping Trump and his administration do not make things worse but knowing he will. While I am not in as bad a situation as other people out there, I certainly am vulnerable and there but for the amusement of the Cosmic Joker go you and me. It is not just one thing. It is really the overall sense of dread wondering what will happen next in the current clusterfuck. I am also concerned about things like inflation, price gouging, so a bit anxious not to spend money on non-essentials. Better to save that money just in case. 

"How about in your community? What kind of things are your neighbors worried about? What about your coworkers? What about friends /family?" 

I have no idea what the neighbors worry about, but given that they are all pretty much Trump and GOP people they probably do not worry much, including the one neighbor with the cutesy sticker on her SUV of "God, Guns, and Trump." I am sure she is feeling fine as long as someone else is getting the shaft. I could not care less what the neighbors worry about or not.  

These days what remains of my family, outside my immediate family at home, does not talk about politics much if ever, and I am good with that. 

At work, my coworkers in varying degrees worry about current events and the regime, but once the first few days of the 2024 elections in the U.S. passed on, they sort of quieted down and settled in.  

"Do you feel like you have all the information  you need to know enough about what's happening in your community? Where do you turn to for information about what's happening in your community?" 

I feel that there is enough in terms of local information. Not a lot, but what there is suffices. Locally, the Berea Citizen weekly is pretty much the main source. It is not that great, but it is what is available. I try to give it a quick read when I can though not as often as I used to do when I moved into town. Some city agencies here use Facebook of all things to make announcements, etc.. I've mostly stopped using Facebook, due to various reasons up to and including their horrible ethics, but I find I do not really miss it. If I need to find some local information, I know where to look and who to ask. I know one or two local people who are connected to the local networks I can ask if needed. 

"Do you feel like you have all the information you need to know enough about what's happening in the United States [and the world]?"  

In terms of overall news, I have a variety of news sources lined up on my RSS reader. I scan through the sources once a day during the work week. On weekends, I mostly disengage from formal news reading, although as we all know by now some news always makes it to your social media, and my social media, mainly Bluesky and Mastodon these days, is no exception to that rule. In addition, I am an academic librarian, if I need to find additional information sources, I either know the sources already or know where to find them or who to ask. 

"Would you say it is important to stay informed about the news?"

For me, yes, it is important to stay informed and at least have a sense of what is going on. A big issue in the United States is the large amount of uninformed citizens who vote. We'd probably not have as many problems as we do now if people actually bothered to read news, be informed, and also evaluate the news they get. If all you do is watch Fox News, you have no advantage over someone who just does not read nor watch news at all. If anything, the uninformed person may have a slight advantage over the Fox News viewer. I know staying informed is not easy, but if you are going to be a responsible and decent citizen you need to make the effort. 

Being informed is also important to be able to navigate the world we live in. For me, as a librarian, being informed helps me do my job better, which enables to help others get the information they need better.  

"Growing up, did anyone in your family read the newspaper or follow the news?"

I remember at home growing up we had at least one newspaper, often two or three. My dad was the one who read the newspapers regularly, often at the end of the day when he got home. Mom, who was a stay at home mom, would read them during the day. At the time, in Puerto Rico, the main two newspapers were El Nuevo Dia, which still operates today, and El Mundo, long gone. There was also El Vocero, which still exists also though it seems to have changed over the years. At the time, El Vocero was basically the local crime sheet. It was known for taking the worst crimes, picking the most gruesome one on a given day, and splashing it on the front page with a headline written in red letters. Mom would often say on seeing it that the newspaper would be bleeding. They basically had "click bait" and "rage bait" before they was the thing it is now. Once in a while we might get an edition of El Vocero if a headline interested my parents. 

At the time, there was also an English language newspaper, The San Juan Star, which my dad began a subscription when we started learning English. He was likely hoping it would help us learn the language, and for me at least it worked since I did start reading it here and there. 

Finally, in terms of newspapers, there was Claridad, which still also operates.  Claridad was the socialist party pro-independence newspaper. Mom would buy it once in a while; she was independendista. However, my memory of reading Claridad comes from one of our neighbors at the time. We used to share carpooling to go back and forth to school. Dad would take us and a kid or two from the neighborhood in the morning, and often one of their parents brought their kid and us back home. One of those parents was also independentista, and he read Claridad regularly. He put a copy in my hand one day telling me that it was important, essential for me to read and be informed, and to read it all, not just what the major mainstream news published. When Claridad was at home, I'd do my best to read it too. 

While I was not a huge news reader, I read enough to know what was going on. I particularly liked science stories. This was the time when Voyager spacecraft were making new discoveries in the Solar System and NASA's Space Shuttle was the new wonder of the time. I found those stories fascinating, and I even would clip a few of them, especially the photos. 

These days, I still read, or at least glance at news sources from back home. El Nuevo Dia and Claridad have RSS feeds, so I have them on my feed reader.  I usually check the headlines of the former, may read an article if it interests me, but I do read from Claridad more often. There is also a new to me newspaper, La Perla, that also has an RSS feed, so I read that one too. When it comes to news from Puerto Rico, I read just enough to have a sense of what is going on. I have not lived in the island for many years now, and my return looks unlikely, so I don't feel a need to have a depth of knowledge. However, if I needed that depth, I can likely catch up with ease. 

As for other news sources, dad often kept the radio in the car on the news station. Keep in mind this was before AM radio became the right wing talk wasteland it is now. The radio news station mostly provided headlines and a bit of information on the headline every hour on the hour, which could get a bit repetitive. On Sundays, the station did have a political talk program-- the program featured local political pundits, but they did make an effort to somewhat balance the politics unlike today-- that dad also listened to, at least until mom got tired of it and told him to change the station.  As for television, you got news during the week in the morning, around 10am if I recall, then 6pm and 10pm for the late viewers. If you did not catch one of the broadcasts you missed it that day. Things like VCRs did not come until a bit later, so you had to make the effort to watch the news if you wanted  to do so. However, if you missed the news broadcast, you did have the option of reading the newspaper the next morning. 

Even though news sources were accessible at home, to be honest, my parents and family did not talk about news very much at home or with other family when we went to visit or they came to visit our home. Part of it I think was the old rule of "things not spoken in polite company," which tend to be politics and religion, news often gets included in that. 

Anyhow, that is how, in a nutshell, I got socialized to reading news and keeping up with news. 

"Was news ever talked about when you were in school?" 

To be honest, not really. I remember there were some school programs to provided newspapers in schools for students to read, but I never was in a school that offered it. Teachers just stuck to whatever the curriculum was at the time. High school seniors had to take a year of Puerto Rico history, and no, nothing current was really taught nor discussed. Given that pro-independence sentiment is on the rise on the island now, I wonder if that has changed any in schools, but at the time, no, not really. And my peers pretty much could not have cared less about news or talking about news. Someone like me who read a lot, news and books, was seen as the nerd type, so I did my reading on my own, and talked about whatever else it was kids talked about in school at the time. 

"Have you ever felt the need to take a break from the news? Deliberately changed your media habits?" 

After the 2016 U.S. elections, given the results, I felt a need to take a break. I declared a self-moratorium on reading anything related to politics, social issues, and activist topics. Before that, I used to read news, and other things, in those topics regularly to stay informed as well as keep learning. Also, I did it to stay informed in order to be a good reference and instruction librarian. After the 2016 elections, I just got burned out. While I did not totally tune out those topics, I made a conscious effort to minimize my exposure. I read and skimmed just enough but I did not share any of what I was reading as I usually do on social media. In fact, I had a small penance where if something I read in those topics moved me enough to share it on social media, I would post pictures of kittens right after to cleanse the social media feeds. It was a bit of light humor in the Hard Times. 

For the most part I managed to keep the moratorium going fairly well. However, with the results of the 2024 U.S. elections, I have found myself drawn into the politics, social issues, and activist materials news cycle, so I have been gradually phasing out the moratorium. One, there is way too much stuff, most of it bad, that I DO need to know about so I can stay alive in the Hard Times. Two, again, in order to help patrons I feel the need to be informed so I can answer their questions. And three, completely tuning out is not a viable option, not if you are going to try to survive and help others do the same as well. So I am reading more news in those topics, and more importantly, reading books on such topics again, which I then write reviews on this blog. For me, reading and reviewing those books is a small way to provide reader's advisory, to inform others, and hopefully help others be educated and informed so they can do the work. It's my small form of doing the work. 

"Do you TALK or SHARE a lot of news with others?"

In person, not much. Online, yes, I do share a bit of what I read through my social media. Sometimes it is serious. Other times I just share the news item with a bit of humor and/or snark.  While I appreciate if others respond to it, politely, I do it mostly for myself to remember and/or entertain myself a little in the Hard Times. For the most part, people on my social media feeds react positively. Part of it I am sure is I have my social media fairly well curated, including blocking as needed, so the explainers, pedants, hardcore partisans, and other assorted fuckbagels get little to no chance of coming in my feeds to bother me and others who may follow me. For anyone who wants to say some bullshit along the lines of needing an open mind or listen to others, I say fuck you. I do not owe anyone my time and my space, and I sure as hell do not owe anyone a "debate." You can take yourself elsewhere with that crap. 

Sometimes folks do ask me for information, and I am happy to help out where I can. However, one thing I stopped doing long ago was any form of fact checking in social media. Given people online really are not interested in facts, I found it is not worth the effort trying to provide those people with accurate information if they do not want it. Some folks are just beyond any redemption, and I am not bothering with them. 

 

And there you have it, some random thoughts on how I get my news. I ended up writing a bit more than I planned, but I needed to write it out. How about folks out there? Feel free to share how you get news, your experiences, so on in the comments below. If you have a blog, and you write a longer piece, you can share the link in the comments. I will do my best to check it out when I can. If you read this far, thank you for stopping by. 

 

 

 

Book Review: Information Literacy and Social Media

Michele Santamaria and A. Nicole Pfannenstiel,  Information literacy and soci@l medi@ : empowered student engagement with the ACRL framework. Chicago, IL: ACRL, 2024.  ISBN: 9798892555456.

Genre: library science

Subgenre: Information literacy, social media, higher education

Format: trade paperback

Source: Hutchins Library, Berea College

 

I ordered this book for our library with high hopes, but in the end I was not really impressed. In addition, I do not think the $50.00 price was worth it for this very slim volume. 

As many of these LIS books, and articles as well, often do, this one starts with the common alarmist tone that most librarians are barely competent, mostly technology illiterate, and are clueless about the tech young ones today use. That could not be further from the truth, but I've read enough LIS books and articles to keep seeing that trope. Naturally, the authors are cool, hip, and knowledgeable and bring you their knowledge. The book shows a bit of the messianic tone some parts of librarianship embrace. 

Once you get past the opening we get a lot of LIS theory, reminders, and connections to the ACRL Framework, and arguments for bringing it and information literacy to social media. Some of the authors' points are valid, and others feel a little forced. In the end, the second chapter is a heavy literature review that is a bit of a slog to read. 

The one useful element of Chapter 2 are the reflection questions for teachers and/or library instructors. Taking the time to answer the questions, do some writing and journaling, can be a good preparation for teachers. It can also just be a good reflection exercise. I probably should take some time and do some of the writing. I have done some writing on my social media experiences, but I can always explore and reflect some more. 

The strength of the book is in Chapter 3 where you get the lesson plans and exercises. The plans are cross-disciplinary. The plans are detailed and well-structure. Activities are interactive and encourage students and their instructors to reflect on their experiences of social media and information literacy. Whether we like it or not, and there is a lot to dislike about social media, it is a big part of our students' lives and we should do better in educating them on how to navigate, use it, and evaluate better. This is where the lessons help. 

Every chapter includes a list of notes, and there is also a bibliography at end of the book for further reading or just to check the references. 

Overall, the good part is in the lesson plans. The rest of the theory could have been summarized better and/or kept brief. I do not think the contents justify the book's high cost. I'd say if you must read it to borrow it, scan the lesson plans, skip the rest. Still, I may try to implement a plan or two from the book down the road. Our students spend some time on social media, though from what I see it's not too connected to news and information. It is more for interpersonal connections, but that could be a topic to investigate down further. 

Overall, I liked the idea of the book. I did not like some of the tone of the book, its execution, nor the pricing. Still, it could've been worse. In the end as a whole it was just OK .

2 out of 5 stars. 

 

Additional reading notes: 

 

Students may push back on social media in the classroom: 

"Students bring with them the idea that social media should be reserved for non-academic purposes, an idea reinforced through schooling, teachers, and responsible use policies" (11).  

I somewhat agree with the students. Heck, I remember the days of early social media where librarians were given all kinds of warnings about not mixing work and personal online and where the wrong social media post could get you fired. Librarians on social media now are mostly normalized, but it is still wise at least to keep the professional and personal  somewhat separated. I say that based on experience, but I do admit it is easier said than done to keep the two aspects separate online. Note that while the authors acknowledge the negatives and dangers of social media, they downplay them somewhat to make their argument. I am not saying to completely disengage from social media, though complete disengagement should be an option if desired, especially in the current Hard Times. 

The list of reflection questions for teachers and librarians, starting in page 17 of the book: 

• What social media platforms do I currently use? What do I use them for?
• What do I believe to be true about the social media platforms I am familiar with (such as Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok, X, and Pinterest?).
• What negative ideas about these spaces do I need to question and complicate/unravel so I can support learner engagement? 
• What positive ideas about these spaces do I need to question and complicate/unravel so I can support learner engagement? 
• What more would I like to know about these spaces to use them more effectively?

 

The list of classroom space reflection questions, to consider as you use the lesson plans here or for other social media activities, from page 48 of the book: 

• How collaborative is the instructional relationship? 
• How many sessions do you anticipate working on this threshold concept?
• Will the librarian be embedded in the course?
• Will the librarian provide ongoing social media and/or learning management system support to students?
• Does the library have library-specific content available within social media sites that can model social media use in support of learning?
• Does the library have social media accounts used to foster interaction between students and librarians?
• What will librarian instructor presence be like, on and offline?

 

 

 

 

Book Review: Lies that kill

Elaine C. Kamarck and Darrell M. West, Lies that kill: a citizen's guide to disinformation. Lanham, MD: Brookings Institution Press, with Rowman and Littlefield, 2024. ISBN: 9780815740728.

Genre: information literacy, media literacy

Subgenre: political science, current affairs, media, technology

Format: trade paperback, but I also had an ARC for it from Edelweiss

Source: Hutchins Library, Berea College

 

For the record, I read this book before the election results of 2024 became known. Looking at the situation now, I feel this book is even more timely. It does take us right up to 2024 right before the elections.

In seven chapters the authors discuss the various ways that disinformation is not only dangerous but outright lethal. They then add one more chapter where they present a series of solutions. The authors wrote the book as a guide to help ordinary people learn about and understand what disinformation is and how it works. The authors discuss how disinformation works in the following areas: 

• elections
• climate change
• public health
• race relations
• war
• governance

 The authors combine case studies, analysis, and documentary material to present their points. The material is presented well with good organization and clear explanations. The preface provides a road map of the book's structure and basic thesis. The first chapter goes over the basics of disinformation and how it works. Chapters 2 to 7 look at disinformation in the areas listed. Chapter 8 provides their solution proposals. 

I felt some of their solutions were either a bit too optimistic or outright not right. For example, wanting universal real name registrations online is not only unrealistic, but it raises all kinds of privacy rights issues and security concerns that the authors seem to ignore in the interest of making a point. 

For the most part, the book is an easy read. Each chapter starts with a case study, then presents and explains the concepts in a clear way. The book does work well as a text for regular people. Jargon is kept to a minimum. For regular people wanting to learn what disinformation is and why it is dangerous, this is a good option. Each chapter includes endnotes for documentation. 

Overall, I really liked the book. I do recommend it for public and academic libraries. The book could also be a good selection for library schools and training librarians in information literacy. We ordered it for our library, and I will promote it locally. 

4 out of 5 stars.

Additional reading notes: 

What social media research shows:  

"Indeed, contemporary research on social media sites has shown that people who have extreme views and are deeply suspicious of experts and traditional media are the ones most likely to be influenced by false narratives and disseminate them to their friends and acquaintances" (8). 

Disinformation defined: 

"We define disinformation as material that is: 

• false
• organized
• intentional and malicious
• harmful
• fast" (8). 

 

A sampling of people you encounter in the book: 

"In this book, we will encounter people who have been accused of crimes they never committed or been pronounced dead of COVID but are still alive" (12). 

 

What AI has done for disinformation: 

"The result of this AI innovation has been a digital space that now has few safeguards in place, less active content moderation, and new tools to spread lies" (42). 

 

Best way to fight disinformation: 

"The best way to fight disinformation is to educate the public about ways to evaluate political narratives and be skeptical about information sources" (127). 

 As an information literacy librarian I do my part to teach these skills to our students (even as certain faculty rush right in to embrace AI, but that is another story).

 

Disinformation is big business, and it needs to be demonetized. I agree, but given the very large financial incentives I do not see it happening, especially in the U.S. where money is a god basically: 

"Practitioners find it easy to make money from subscriptions, ad revenue, and merchandise sales associated with false narratives. Some sites make millions peddling false content about elections, climate change, public health, government, and race. Unless we take significant action, we will never stop the flow of deadly information about these and other topics" (135-136). 

Knowing what I know and my skill set, if I had bad ethics or no ethics at all, I would would be making bank. The thought does occur to me now and then, but my decency and integrity are not for sale even if, as attributed often to P.T. Barnum, there is a sucker born every minute. 

 

Qualifies for the following 2025 Reading Challenge: 

 

Book Review: Logged In and Stressed Out

Paula Durlofsky, Logged in and stressed out: how social media is affecting your mental health and what you can do about it. Lanham, MA: Rowman and Littlefield, 2020. ISBN: 9781538176290.

Genre: psychology, popular culture, mental health, technology

Subgenre: social media, self help

Format: trade paperback

Source: Hutchins Library, Berea College 

 

"The truth is that obsessively checking social media, e-mails, texts, and other virtual sites robs us of valuable time that could be used for our personal development and deepening our real-life relationships or forming new ones" (1). 

I picked this book up in part because I had recently heard one of those less than bright commenters on social media saying "no one really knows if social media causes stress or not." I wanted to learn more. It turns out that there is enough evidence to show that yes, being online and engaged with social media can cause stress and other mental health issues. Not everything is known, and there is more to learn, but there is enough known contrary to what the online pundits may say. 

This book not only shows that social media can affect your mental health. It also gives you the tools and advice to do something helpful and constructive about it. 

The book features an introduction, nine chapters, notes, and a selected bibliography. The chapters feature topics such as: 

• Building relationships in the Digital Age.
• Breaking up in the Digital Age.
• Medicating with Technology.
   

If you are feeling stressed or distressed in some way about your engagement with social media, this may be a book for you. It is a relatively easy read, though there are times the author lays the psychology a bit thick with name dropping and theories. On the positive, the concepts are explained well enough. Still this book may be a bit more for the more informed secular reader. 

The chapters combine an overview of the topic and two sample patient accounts. The author uses the patients' experiences to illustrate points. Along the way, we get practical tips and advice for dealing with the issues. The chapters also include skill-building strategies and end with a list of recommendations. These practical actions are another good element in the book. 

Naturally, if things are really bad, you should see a trained professional. However, there is no explanation or even acknowledgement of what happens if you can't afford a therapist. Professional mental health care is a big issue in the United States in large part because it is largely unaffordable, assuming you can even find a therapist taking in new patients (see here for example). In the end, at least some of the practices in the book can prove helpful, maybe at least ameliorate some folks' stress due to social media. 

Overall, it is a pretty good book. It offers advice that anyone using social media at any age can use and apply. It addresses a variety of issues related to social media, and it does not just tell you to get rid of it (although for some folks that may be a valid choice). Rather, it gives you ideas for engaging with social media in positive ways. 

This could be a good book for college students in courses like wellness, health, psychology, and some general studies classes. In the end, I really liked it. 

4 out of 5 stars. 

Book qualifies for the following 2024 Reading Challenge: 

Book Review: Verified

Mike Caulfield and Samuel S. Wineburg, Verified: How to think straight, get duped less, and make better decisions about what to believe online. Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press, 2023. ISBN: 9780226822068.

Genre: reference

Subgenre: information literacy, internet, research

Format: trade paperback

Source: Hutchins Library, Berea College

 

This book is an essential guide everyone using the internet needs to have handy. This book teaches how to be skeptical of what you see online and how to evaluate it. In these Hard Times where the internet and social media are full of scams, click bait, rage bait, and all sorts of assorted bullshit, this book gives you the tools to separate the crap from the few good things that remain. This guide can help you navigate the enshittified internet. 

The book is arranged as follows: 

• Introduction.
• Chapter 1: Get quick context.
• Chapter 2: Cheap signals. 
• Chapter 3: Google.
• Chapter 4: Lateral reading. 
• Chapter 5: Reading the room.
• Chapter 6: Show me the evidence. 
• Chapter 7: Wikipedia.
• Chapter 8: Video games. No, it is not about games. This is more about how videos are used to deceive. 
• Chapter 9: Stealth advertising. 
• Chapter 10: Once more with feeling. 
• Chapter 11: Conclusion. 
• Postscript, which briefly covers large language models, so-called AI, and verification.
• Notes and bibliography. 

Caulfield, one of the two coauthors, created the SIFT method (Stop, Investigate, Find other coverage, Trace the claim). Along with Wineburg, they basically give you a full course on how to evaluate what you see online so you can be empowered and act accordingly. The authors take you through the process step by step. These are skill you can learn with relative ease, and you develop the critical habits taught in the book you'll be able to better navigate the internet. A strength of their lessons is that often they do not take a lot of time. That is because you learn to assess quickly. If you decide to pursue a topic further, the authors show you how to do so. If you assess and decide something is not valid, relevant, or just not worth your energy, you can swiftly move on. Being efficient is a key element here. 

The book is relatively easy to read. Each chapter gives you practical examples and then they explain how to best handle each situation. You then learn the overall lesson so you can apply it when you go online. Chapters also include various tips and pieces of advice. Every chapter ends with a list of takeaways summarizing what you are learning. 

By now I am sure many academic librarians apply the lessons from the book in library instruction. We've done some some of it, but we will be working on adding more formal elements from the book in our instruction sessions. However, you do not have to be in an academic setting. This accessible book works for anyone wanting to learn how to find reliable information, evaluate it, and avoid the rest of the crap out there. In a time when Google largely has gone to shit, this book gives you steps and advice for making some good from Google. You learn how to do lateral reading like fact checkers do, and Wikipedia can be your ally, contrary to what some old time educators may claim. Learn that and more reading this book, then keep it handy for when you need a reminder now and again. 

This book is essential for all libraries. Librarians who have not ready it need to read it and then promote it to their patrons. The book can be beneficial for students in composition classes that require research. It may also be of interest to journalism students, journalists, and other writers who do or should be doing research. I recommend it fully, and I would buy a copy for my personal shelf. 

5 out of 5 stars. 

Additional reading notes: 

What this book can help you with: 

"Instead of being driven by emotion and outrage, you'll come to see your gut reactions as precious gifts that signal you to pause, take a breath, and ask a basic question: Is what I am looking at even what I think it is?" (3) 

 

Google is a search engine, not a truth engine:

"Google is not a dispassionate partner in information seeking who diligently corrects you when you've taken a wrong turn. Google is out to please, trying to determine what you want-- even if doing so means giving you a dubious answer but one you want to hear" (78). 

 And with its high commercialization, predominant advertising model, and now integrating LLM and AI features, it's gotten worse in terms of finding what you actually need. 

Need to beware expertise cynicism: 

"In authoritarian regimes, creating a broad cynicism about all sources of expertise-- the press, academics, professionals-- serves to make sure political power, not truth-seeking, is the ultimate arbiter of what is true" (109). 

This book qualifies for the following 2024 Reading Challenges: 

Reading List for 2023

Welcome to my 2023 reading list and end of year report. In addition to the list and some numbers related to my reading, I will add a few end of year thoughts on things like blogging and social media. Before I go on, once again I did write a post on my thoughts about the pandemic at the end of 2023. If you are interested, or in case you missed it, feel free to check it out. I also wrote some random thoughts on what is left of my social media at the start of 2024. 2023 was a year I cut down dramatically on my social media presence, and I think it is for the better. Anyhow, feel free to read that for details.

As I noted at the end of last year, I stopped worrying about Notes from a Simple Librarian, my professional blog. If I find something I want to write about related to librarianship, I will write it. If not, not too worried.  I wrote five blog posts over there in 2023. 

My main blogging focus is here at The Itinerant Librarian. I continue writing book reviews both as a way to remember what I read and as a small form of reader's advisory. It's my small way as a librarian to give back to other readers. I also do cartomancy deck reviews and a miscellaneous post here or there. Overall, I am pretty happy blogging here, and I hope to continue in 2024 and beyond. The blog schedule here is a new post every Friday, plus additional posts here or there when needed or I feel like posting more. 

A reminder for any authors and publishers, if you would like me to review your book or your cartomancy deck, feel free to contact me. I do suggest you look over my reviews policy to make sure we are a good fit for each other. For a sampling of what I have reviewed in Tarot and cartomancy, feel free to check the Tarot tag on the right column of this blog. 

After this blog, my blogging focus is on my cartomancy and commonplace blog, Alchemical Thoughts. This is where I post about my Tarot and cartomancy journey. Deck interview spreads are a highlight of this blog. The blog also serves a bit as a commonplace book where I jot down quotes and other small things I want to remember. I continue to work on writing for this blog, exploring new ideas. 

Overall, as I noted on my social media post (link above), when I cut back on my social media presence, I lost reach for the blogs. Oh well, I will just continue to persevere, and I hope people will gradually discover the blogs and tell their friends about it. Every little bit of sharing helps. 

Oh, another reminder. If you want to see what I was watching during the year in terms of media, you can check the film and television tag where you can find my monthly wrap up posts of what I was watching. I continue to enjoy using TubiTv for a lot of the streaming I watch. I do try other services here or there depending on what they have at a given time. 

In other things, my politics/social issues/activist stuff moratorium continues. This means, in brief, I do not read nor watch any media on any of those three topics, or I avoid it as much as possible. As I have mentioned before, after 2016, I just got burned out on that stuff. It does not mean I don't care. It just means I choose not to engage for the sake of my mental health. I will admit a book slips in here or there that breaks the moratorium. I don't regret breaking the moratorium, but for the most part I've managed to maintain in during the year, and I will continue to maintain it in 2024. As I have said before, I cannot tune out 100%. Tempting as it is, personally and professionally I have to keep some awareness and stay informed. I do minimize the exposure as much as possible then. 

A new thing in 2023 was my boycott of the publishers and imprints suing and trying to shut down Internet Archive. You can find my full statement on that here. The boycott means there are books I will not be reading anytime soon. As I wrote on the statement, I have no delusions those companies will do any change, but it is my way to make a stand and express my displeasure. At any rate, there are plenty of books to read from other decent publishers. I am thinking I may write a follow up post on the statement, probably close to March 2024 when I reach one year in the boycott. 

Finally on the updates, my cartomancy studies continue, and I feel they are going well. I have been doing some cartomancy challenges and prompts that I share on social media, so if you follow me on social media, feel free to check those posts out. I am considering at some point in the future offering small modest readings for folks online somehow. I need to work on the logistics of that, so stay tuned. 

So now, let's get on with my reading list for 2023. Book titles with an asterisk (*) indicates a re-reread.

January 2023

• Brian Keene, Earthworm Gods. 
• Bryan Paiement, The Little Book of Whiskey Cocktails. 
• Joe Benitez, Lady Mechanika, Volume 1. 
• Matthieu Gabella, et.al., The Cimmerian, Volume 4.
   

February: 

• Ru-Lee Story, Your Tarot Toolkit: Simple Activities for your Daily Practice.
• Scott Montgomery, The 2000 AD Encyclopedia.
• Martha Wells, Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries, Book 2). 
• Dik Browne, Hagar the Horrible: Happy Hour. 
• James Tynion IV, et.al., Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Volume 2.
• Eliot Rahal, Knock 'Em Dead.
• Colette Baron Reid, The Wisdom of Avalon Oracle Cards (kit with deck and companion book). 
• Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman. The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living.
• Dik Brown, Hagar the Horrible: Sacking Paris on a Budget. 

 

March: 

• Brian O'Connor, Armorclads.
• Emma Smith, Portable Magic: a History of Books and Their Readers.
• David G. Marwell, Mengele: Unmasking the Angel of Death.
• Tsugumi Ohba, Death Note, Volume 2: Confluence.
• Dik Browne, Hagar Hits the Mark.
• Aaron Dembski-Bowden, The First Heretic: Fall to Chaos (The Horus Heresy, Book 14). 
• Riccardo Minetti, Franco Rivolli, and Barbara Moore, Green Oracle (kit with deck and book).
   

April:

• Simon Garfield, All the Knowledge in the World: the Extraordinary History of the Encyclopedia.
• Stephanie Phillips, et.al., Harley Quinn, Volume 1: No Good Deed.
• Roben Farzad, Hotel Scarface: Where Cocaine Cowboys Partied and Plotted to Control Miami.
• John and Caitlin Matthews (authors) and Wil Kingham (artist), The Steampunk Tarot: Wisdom from the Gods of the Machine (kit with deck and book). 
• Zac Thompson, I Breathed a Body.
• Hannah Dolan, et.al., LEGO Star Wars Ideas Book. 
• Anthony M. DeStefano, The Big Heist: the Real Story of the Lufthansa Heist, the Mafia, and Murder. *
• Sarah Milne, The Book Lover's Guide to London. 
• Shinsuke Hosokawa, Zen Wisdom for the Anxious.
   

 

May:

• Kyle Gray, Angels and Ancestors Oracle (kit with deck and companion book).
• Rose George, Ninety Percent of Everything. 
• Ty Templeton, Batman Adventures: Nightwing Rising.
• Dik Browne, Hagar the Horrible: Motley Crew. 
• Stephen Bullivant, Nonverts: The Making of Ex-Christian America.
• Sam Magdaleno, The Big Book of Tarot Meanings.
   

 

June: 

• Josephine Ellershaw, Easy Tarot Combinations. 
• Jake Richards, Doctoring the Devil.
  
• Stacey Graham (author) and Paul Kepple (illustrator), The Zombie Tarot (kit with deck and book).
• Various authors, Batman Adventures: Cat Got Your Tongue? 
• Various authors, Star Wars Legends Epic Collection: The Empire, Vol. 1.*
• P.N. Elrod, I, Strahd: the Memoirs of a Vampire. 
• Cheryl Yambrach Rose, Art Through the Eyes of the Soul Oracle (kit with deck and companion book). 
• Nat Segaloff, The Exorcist Legacy: 50 Years of Fear. 
• Jeffrey Brown, Star Wars Jedi Academy. 
• Gary Larson, The Far Side Gallery 5.* 

 

July: 

• Todd McFarlane, Batman/Spawn: the Deluxe Edition. 
• H. Byron Ballard, Roots, Branches, and Spirits. 
• Ben Davies, Reading Novels During the Covid-19 Pandemic. 
• Marianne Julia Strauss, ed., Temples of Books.  
• Deborah Bonello, Narcas: the Secret Rise of Women in Latin America's Cartels. 
• Kathleen McLaughlin, Blood Money. 
• Caitlin Matthews, The Celtic Wisdom Oracle (kit with deck and companion book). 
• Kristoffer Hughes (author) and Chris Down (artist), Celtic Tarot (kit with deck and companion book). 

 

 August: 

• Carl Banks, Walt Disney's Donald Duck: The Black Pearls of Tabu Yama.
• Jane Fritsch, Serial Killers of the '70s.
• Tom Gauld, Revenge of the Librarians.
• Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti, Harley Quinn, Volume 3: Red Meat.
• Ricardo Nuila, The People's Hospital.
• Aaron Bowden-Dembski, Helsreach (Space Marines Battles 2, Warhammer 40,000).
• Antonio Pagliarulo, The Evil Eye.
  

 

 September: 

• Rachel Kramer Bussel, How to Write Erotica.

 

October: 

• Steve Parker, Shadowbreaker (Deathwatch, Warhammer 40,000).
• Michael Korda, Making the List: a Cultural History of the American Bestseller, 1900-1999.
• Alana Fairchild, Kuan Yin Oracle (kit with deck and companion book). 
• Andy Borowitz, Profiles in Ignorance. 
• Riccardo Minetti and Laura Sava, Dark Mirror Oracle (kit with deck and companion book). 
• David Kendall, ed., The Mammoth Book of Zombie Comics. 
• Maggie Stiefvater, The Raven's Prophecy Tarot (kit with deck and companion book).
   

 November: 

• Adam Minter, Secondhand: Travels in the New Global Garage Sale.
• Lindsay Squire, Tarot Magick. 
• Tom Gauld, You're All Just Jealous of my Jetpack.
• Norman Solomon, War Made Invisible.
• Barbara Moore and Johnathan Hunt, Trick Or Treat Tarot (kit with deck and companion book).
• Tom Gauld, Baking with Kafka. 
• Clive Barker, Infernal Parade. 

 

December: 

• Martha Kirby Capo and Vincent Higginbotham, Thrifty Witchery.
• J.M. DeMatteis, et.al., Creature Commandos.  
• William King, The Space Wolf Omnibus (Warhammer 40,000). 
• Richard Crookes, Tai Chi Reflections (kit with deck and companion book). 
• Serena Valentino, Undead: Everything the Modern Zombie Needs to Know. 
  

 

Number of books read in 2023: 80, including 3 re-reads. 

 

Number of books read in 2022:  82, including 5 re-reads (the 2022 list).

Number of books reading in 2021: 69, including 3 re-reads (the 2021 list).

Number of books read in 2020: 80, including 5 re-reads (the 2020 list).

Number of books read in 2019: 72   (the 2019 list).

Number of books read in 2018: 74, including 2 re-reads (the 2018 list).
Number of books read in 2017: 84 (the 2017 list).
Number of books read in 2016: 92, including re-reads (the 2016 list).
Number of books read in 2015: 123, including 2 re-reads (the 2015 list).
Number of books read in 2014: 152, including 2 re-reads (the 2014 list).
Number of books read in 2013: 173, including 2 re-reads (the 2013 list).
Number of books read in 2012: 117, with 6 re-reads (the 2012 list).
Number of books read in 2011: 119, with 3 re-reads (the 2011 list). 
Number of books read in 2010:  119, with 6 rereads (the 2010 list).
Number of books read in 2009: 98, with 5 rereads. I believe this is the first time I started to actively track rereads. (the 2009 list).
Number of books read in 2008: 111 (the 2008 list).
Number of books read in 2007: 85 (the 2007 list).
Number of books read in 2006: 106 (the 2006 list).
Number of books read in 2005: 73

Commentaries and thoughts on the numbers and reading: 

I am happy I managed to read 82 books in 2023, which is close to what I read in 2022. These days, with the Hard Times I am reluctant to make predictions on how many books I may end up reading. I just take it a day at a time, and I go from there. So aside from a reading challenge or two, which I have to decide on as of this post, I am not setting any specific reading goals for 2024. We'll just see how it goes. 

Speaking of reading challenges, I completed 2 out of the 3 challenges I started in 2023. I basically was not able to complete the audiobooks challenge. However, I did very well on the Mount TBR Reading Challenge.  I will probably sign up again for the Mount TBR Reading Challenge and the NetGalley/Edelweiss Reading Challenge. I will post a reading challenges post for 2024 once I get my act together. 

On a side note, yes, I still use GoodReads to track what I read. I am not thrilled with it, but the alternatives, such as BookWyrm and Storygraph, which I tried out in 2023, just seriously fall short. I am giving thought to checking Library Thing again. For now, it is what it is, and I am not terribly worried about it. At the moment, just keeping an eye out for a decent alternative option. 

So, let's look at the numbers: 

Number of rereads: 2, and I admit one of them was accidental, as in I did not recall reading it previously. I am OK with that. 

Best reading month: June with 10 books.

Worse reading month: September with 1 book. 

 

 

Number of books read in print: 63

Number of books read as e-books: 17

Number of books read as audiobooks: 0

Despite reading galleys for review, print continues to be my dominant format for reading.  E-books were either NetGalley or Edelweiss Plus advanced review copies (ARCs). I did not pick up any audiobooks. 

Number of graphic novels (includes graphic novels and comics. Does not include manga): 24

Number of manga: 1 

 

Nonfiction: 47

Fiction (does not include graphic novels nor manga): 8

I continue to be consistent in favoring nonfiction for my reading. Reading 8 works of fiction in a year is good for me. 

 

 

Library books: 

• Public library.
  
• Berea branch, Madison County (KY) Public Library: 15
• Eastside Branch, Lexington Public Library: 11
• Libby, formerly Overdrive (can be either public library): 0
• Hoopla (via Madison County Public Library): 0
   
• Hutchins Library: 8
  
• Interlibrary Loan: 4 

 

Usually I check out at least a couple of electronic books via Overdrive and/or Hoopla. This year I did not check anything out from the electronic library services. I may try to give them another look in 2024. However, given I usually read galleys as e-books, I don't always have an incentive to find e-books in Overdrive or Hoopla. I access Interlibrary Loan through Hutchins Library, my workplace. 4 books in a year is pretty good. 

Books I own. For this, I can refer to my results of the Mount TBR Challenge for 2023. I read a total of 24 books I own. 

Books borrowed from anyone (not family) or recommended by others: 0. 

Other numbers of interest (at least to me): 

 

• Erotica: 1. This was not a good year for reading erotica. The Hard Times are not always good for reading erotica. Hard Times are just not conducive. We will just have to see how it goes in 2024.
• LIS and reference: 4. That is OK, but I may be able to do better. I am probably going to increase that number in 2024 due to work. Accreditation is coming back again, curriculum changes are in the works on campus, so I am anticipating I may need to do some more reading in the LIS area. Also, I need to work a bit more on checking new reference works we add to our collection, which I could then review here. Stay tuned. 
• Tarot and oracle: including companion books for specific decks: 15
• Other esoterica/pagan/spirituality: 7 
• NetGalley: 7
• Edelweiss: 7. I did not plan NetGalley and Edelweiss Plus totals to match, but here we are. 
• Other books offered for review, not from NetGalley nor Edelweiss. These may be books I got from a publisher, an author, etc. because I requested or they were offered for review: 1
• Books in Spanish: 0. I admit I did not put much effort trying to find books written in Spanish to read in 2023. 
• True crime: 4.
• Food and drink: 1
• Poetry: 0
• Books that broke the moratorium. Naturally, this should be zero, but I read 2 books that broke moratorium in 2023. 2 out of 80 is pretty good. This is definitely better than last year when I started tracking this and at the time read 7 books that broke moratorium. 

 

This time last year I was reading the following books. Links go to the reviews. 

• Brian Keene, Earthworm Gods.
• David G. Marwell, Mengele: Unmasking the Angel of Death.
• Joe Benitez, Lady Mechanika, Volume 1: the Mystery of the Mechanical Corpse.
• Ru-Lee Story, Your Tarot Toolkit: Simple Activities for your Daily Practice. 

As we start 2024, I am reading the following books: 

• Ben Counter, The Soul Drinkers Omnibus (Warhammer 40,000). 
• Apollo Publishers, Words to Win By: the Slogans, Logos, and Designs of America's Presidential Elections. 
• R.K. Brislin, Atheist in Appalachia: Nonbelief in Rural America.

Finally, to wrap up, here are other bloggers who have done end of year lists, compilations, etc. It is a small list, and one that keeps getting harder to put together as bloggers go on hiatus or extinct. As long as I can I will keep on blogging. The list is in no particular order: 

 

• Feed Your Fiction Addiction has their 2023 End of Year Survey...with graphs.  
• The Literary Salon does their 2023 in review. 
• RA for All assesses how they did in 2023 and then set goals for 2024. 
• That Artsy Reader Girl's end of year.
   

If you made it this far, thank you for stopping by and reading. Feel free to leave a comment or two. If you did an end of year reading post, feel free to share the link so I can go check it out. Hope everyone out there has a happy, prosperous, and safe new year.

 

 

 

 

Random Thoughts: My social media presence as 2024 starts

I've been wanting to write about this for a bit, and I finally found a bit of time to do it. 2023 was finally the year I left Twitter. I had started planning my exit the previous year back at the start of 2022 when Elon Musk announced his intention to buy Twitter. So finally in 2023, I locked down the account to private status, downloaded the data file, and that was that. Right away, I can say that the worst that happened for me was a loss of reach, especially for my blogs. I have not done any deep analysis, but I can tell I have lost some visibility. Still, keeping that outreach was not worth staying on Twitter.

When I started planning my Twitter exit, I signed on to Mastodon. I briefly tried T2, which later became Pebble, which then went bust. More recently, I got an invite to Bluesky, so I am there tentatively. 

In addition, I also pretty much had left Facebook. I left the account locked as much as possible. I still have to log in for work as my library insists on using it, and a lot of the college's students dwell on Facebook. We do get some return on that outreach, but not great. Aside from that, I have family there that won't move elsewhere, so if I want to stay in touch, see photos of the nieces and nephews, I reluctantly check in once in a while. I keep the exposure as low as possible. 

So what is left?

Mastodon is now my primary social media presence. It has a bit of a learning curve, but it is not the complicated mess that certain detractors and journalists claim it to be. If you were able to use Twitter,  you can use Mastodon. A big challenge can be choosing your initial instance (server), but you can always move to a different server. So far, I am happy with my current instance, and I foresee staying there long term for now. Keep in mind there is no algorithm, so you do have to put some work choosing who to follow and curating your feed. It is worth the effort. Additionally, Mastodon has better feature than Twitter and Bluesky including longer text limits, ability to edit posts any time, and robust filtering options.  

Bluesky I got in when a friend sent me an invite code. By the way, I have some invite codes as of this post, so if interested you can drop me a line or comment. As my friend described it at the time, it is a nice neighborhood that will soon get gentrified. So far it has worked OK for me. I stay skeptical given its association to Jack Dorsey, the previous Twitter guy. Do note Bluesky is still closed and invite-only to get in, so I am also leery of what will happen when they do open it fully. In the meantime, it is OK for me. It lacks a lot of basic feature such as DM's (direct messaging), filters, and the ability to edit posts. Also text limits are short when compared to Mastodon. One good thing is it has attracted some famous writers like Neil Gaiman, John Scalzi, and Brian Keene. It also lacks functional hashtags, which is a big failure on their part. I am staying for now, but I could easily leave it if need be. 

I recently implemented a YouTube channel where I do a bit on books and reading and a bit on cartomancy. It is not a major endeavor, but I still am learning how to use it. 

I do have one or two other accounts, but I do not use them such as Instagram, which is owned by Meta, which also owns Facebook. I may open a new account here or there to park the username, but I am no rush to do that. 

As you can see, I am still blogging, so folks can always find me through my blogs. If anything, leaving Twitter and reducing my social media overall has made me a bit more mindful of what I use and consume. By the way, you can find my personal links on the right side column of this blog.

My Reading List for 2022

Welcome to my 2022 Reading List and end of year report. In addition to my reading list for the year and some numbers on my reading, this post includes some end of year thoughts on things like social media and blogging. As I did in 2020 and 2021, I did write a post on my thoughts regarding the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, which you can read if interested. I am not surprised I was able to write a third pandemic post, but there you have it. 

This is the year I finally decided to stop worrying about my professional blog, Notes From a Simple Librarian. I managed to do 21 posts in 2022, with the latest posts in August. I suppose that is not bad for the year. I am pretty much keeping it to posting when I feel like it or find the time. As I have mentioned before, finding time to write about library and information science (LIS) things is not easy for me these days. The dramas that happen in the profession just do not interest me as much, and finding time to write about things I do locally is not easy. They do keep me busy at work, and I am grateful for that. For this blog, I will just take it a step and a day at a time. 

This blog here continues to do well, or at least I feel it is doing well. It is mostly a book blog by now featuring book reviews and other things of interest about books and the reading life. I still did the "Signs the Economy is Bad" feature in 2022, though I am finding myself making the effort for it less often. I think part of it is just me trying to avoid negative things, even if I am poking fun at them here or there. I do not think I will complete phase out the feature, but I may keep it as a less frequent feature. I am happy focusing more on books and reading. I am happy with the blog, and I plan to keep it up in 2022. Posting schedule for this blog is every Friday, plus some special posts on other days here or there.

Oh, by the way, a reminder note and a bit of self-advertising, if you are an author, editor, or publisher, and you think you have a book, or cartomancy deck (and related works), I may want to read and review, please read and check out my book review statement, and let me know. I am happy to consider books if they fit within my reading parameters and interests. For a sampling of what I have reviewed in Tarot and cartomancy, check out the Tarot tag in this blog.

My cartomancy blog, Alchemical Thoughts, continues, and I feel it did well in 2022. To the best of my ability, I aim to post on it every Wednesday, plus a special post here or there on other days. For 2023, I want to focus a bit more on this blog, so stay tuned as I work on some new posts and content ideas. 

This was the year I finally decided to just close down my NewTumbl account. To be honest, much of the site has gone from seedy to somewhat disgusting. As I wrote in my review of the site, if you like porn and lots of it, it can be a site for you. Aside from that, anyone doing microblogging in the style of Tumblr trying to find content other than porn will have a hard time. I like porn as much as the next healthy guy, but it does not mean I want it constantly up and in front. In addition, the regular content I would share there was just not getting any traction, so it was not worth the effort to have another platform open. I just went ahead, deactivated it, and deleted it. It was a learning experience, so I am grateful for that, but not worth it for me overall. I will keep an eye out for other microblogging options, but I am in no rush to jump into microblogging again. 

I mentioned getting a Letterboxd profile last year, but I have not used it much. I was hoping to use it to track movies much as I do book on GoodReads. However, I do not watch a lot of movies in a month, and I can track them just fine here on the blog when I do my monthly media roundups. I may give it a go this year, but it is not a priority. I would like to see what kind of viewing statistics I can get for end of year. 

In terms of movies and media, TubiTv continues to be my go to place. As I have mentioned before, sure it has a lot of schlock, but you do find some good things too. It has gotten better over time in terms of content available. While I do have some other ad supported streamers marked for use, I tend to keep going back to Tubi as I find it to be the easiest to use. One thing I enjoy greatly from Tubi are the foreign/international films; I can often find some very good gems in that category. On a side note, Tubi is now doing their own original films and shows, so that may be something to explore more in 2023.

 

The one new thing in terms of social media this year for me was getting a Mastodon account. I had heard of the site, but I finally got into it shortly after Eli Cologne announced his first intentions to buy Twitter back in April. I did it as a precaution, and given that his eventual purchase of the site later in the year has proven to be chaotic (and that is a charitable way of describing it), I am glad I got into Mastodon. You can find the link to my Mastodon profile and instance on this blog's right column. So far I am pretty happy with it. I have not left Twitter just yet, but I feel I can easily do so when it becomes untenable to stay on Twitter. I have found Mastodon to be a much nicer place and more easy going.  

On another side note, I still have my CounterSocial (CoSo) profile, but I pretty much left it dormant, and I am not really using it. What I wrote in my review of the site a while back is still very applicable, so I am not interested it going back anytime soon. I have logged in once in a while to keep it active, but otherwise have not used it, and I am not likely to keep using. I am just not sure about shutting it down  yet, but that is a possibility. It is just not for me. At this point, this is likely the last time I will talk about CoSo here. 

In other news, my politics and social issues moratorium in reading and media continues, and it will continue into the foreseeable future. Despite the Hard Times, I don't think I quite tightened it more in 2022; some things may have slipped, at least on social media. I am making a more conscious effort to avoid the politics, social issues, and activist stuff more, so this may be a year I keep that stuff to a minimum on my social media. I did read some books that would break the moratorium, but I felt they were worth it. I am going to add below the number of books I see as breaking the moratorium to get an idea how well or not I did in this regard. Overall, I keep trying to tune out most news, especially politics, social issues, and activist stuff; it helps me keep my sanity. While I cannot 100% tune out of everything, I am doing a very conscious effort to minimize as much as possible. 

Finally for the status report part of this post, my cartomancy studies continue to do well. If anything, I am finding the urge I need to read and study more in this area, so that is a good thing. I continue to post some things from that journey on the blog Alchemical Thoughts, so if that interests you, I encourage you to check the blog out. Link is up above and on the right column of this blog. My cartomancy is definitely something that helps me personally and does bring me comfort and solace.

 

With the status updates out of the way, let's get to the books and reading for 2022. Things have been rough and hard since 2020, and 2022 certainly was not better. So, here is the list of books I read in 2022. After the list, you can check out my numbers and miscellaneous reading statistics. On the list, a book marked with an asterisk (*) is a book I reread.

 

The reading list for 2022:

 

January: 

 

• Anthony M. DeStefano, The Deadly Don: Vito Genovese, Mafia Boss.
• Leanna Greenaway and Beleta Greenaway, Catalog of the Unexplained: From Aliens and Aromatherapy to Zen and Zener Cards. 
• Jim Davis, Garfield Fat Cat 3-Pack, Volume 22. 
• James Van Praagh, The Soul's Journey Lesson Cards (kit with deck and guidebook). 
• Jeff Parker, Ninjak, Book 1.
• Sinclair Sexsmith, Best Lesbian Erotica of the Year, Volume 6.
• Rachel Stuart-Haas, Mercury in Retrograde.
  

 

February: 

 

• Juan Villoro, Horizontal Vertigo: a City Called Mexico.
• Jim Davis, Garfield Dishes It Out: His 27th Book. 
• Debra DeAngelo, Pagan Curious: a Beginner's Guide to Nature, Magic, and Spirituality.
• Nancy C. Antenucci, Tarot Rituals: Ceremonies, Ideas, and Experiences for the Tarot Lover.
   

March: 

 

• Darryl Cunningham, Putin's Russia: the Rise of a Dictator. 
• Various authors, The Cimmerian, Volume 2. 
• Elie Mystal, Allow Me to Retort: a Black Guy's Guide to the Constitution. 
• Ed Halter, From Sun Tzu to XBox: War and Video Games. 
• Corrine Kenner (author) and John J. Blumenthal (illustrator), Tarot de los Magos (deck with companion book).
• Colette Baron-Reid, The Spirit Animal Oracle (deck with companion book).
• Thomas Mann, The Oxford Guide to Library Research.
• Steven Bright, Divination: Your Personal Guide.
   

April:

• Al Ewing and various artists, Judge Dredd: Blaze of Glory.
• Various authors, Star Wars Year By Year: a Visual History.
• Jim Davis, Fat Cat 3-Pack, Volume 2. 
• Andrew Pettegree and Arthur der Weduwen, The Library: a Fragile History.
• Denise Linn, Native Spirit Oracle Cards (deck with companion book).
• Various authors, Transformers: Beast Wars, Volume 1.
• Stephan Pastis, Pearls Hogs the Road: a Pearls Before Swine Treasury.
• Ann Rule, The I-5 Killer. 
• Leeza Robertson, Tarot Priestess: Using the Cards to Heal, Grow, & Serve.
• Jan Budkowsky, Runes: Your Personal Guide. 
• Jim Davis, Fat Cat 3-Pack, Volume 12.*
• Sandra Anne Taylor, Energy Oracle Cards (deck and companion book set).
  

May: 

• Jim Davis, Garfield The Big Cheese: His 59th Book.
• Sanshiro Kasama (author) and Hikaru Uesugi (artist), Deadpool Samurai, Volume 1.
• Maureen Johnson (author) and Jay Cooper (illustrator), Your Guide to Not Getting Murdered in a Quaint English Village. 
• Geoffrey Roberts, Stalin's Library: a Dictator and His Books. 
• John Lithgow, Dumpty: the Age of Trump in Verse.
  

June: 

• Martha Wells, All Systems Red (The Murderbot Diaries, Book 1). 
• Holly Adams Easley, The History of Tarot Art: Demystifying the Art and Arcana, Deck by Deck.
• Dan Curtis Johnson, et.al., Chase (DC Comics).
• Franckie Alarcon, The Art of Sushi.
• Joe Benitez, Lady Mechanika, Volume 6: Sangre.
• Leiji Matsumoto, Space Pirate Captain Harlock.
• Sandy Mitchell, The Greater Good (Ciaphas Cain Book 9, Warhammer 40,000).

 

July:

• Miles Harvey, The King of Confidence: a Tale of Utopian Dreamers, Frontier Schemers, True Believers, False Prophets, and the Murder of an American Monarch.
• James Tynion IV, The Joker War Saga.
• David Javerbaum, The Book of Pslams: 97 Divine Diatribes on Humanity's Total Failure.
• Ann Rule, Practice to Deceive.
• Sanshiro Kasama (author) and and Hikaru Uesugi (artist), Deadpool Samurai, Volume 2.
• James Tynion IV, Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
• Jim Davis, Garfield: What Leftovers?: His 71st Book.*
• Serhy Yekelchyk, Ukraine: What Everyone Needs to Know.
• R.A. Salvatore, The Dao of Drizzt.
• Cullen Bunn, Shadowman, Book One.
• David A. Ross, Tarot and Tequila: A Tarot Guide With Cocktails.

 

August: 

• Disney, The Empire Strikes Back Screen Comix. 
• Stephan Pastis, Pearls Gets Sacrificed: a Pearls Before Swine Treasury.
• Michael Benson, Gangsters Vs. Nazis: How Jewish Mobsters Battled Nazis in Wartime America.

 

September:

• Eric Berkowitz, Dangerous Ideas: a Brief History of Censorship in the West, from the Ancients to Fake News.
• Tsugumi Ohba (author) and Takeshi Obata (artist), Death Note, Volume 1: Boredom. 
• Greg Pak, Star Wars Age of Rebellion: Heroes.
• Jim Davis, Garfield Fat Cat 3-Pack Volume 20.
• Nicholas A. Basbanes, Every Book Its Reader: the Power of the Printed Word to Stir the World.
• Clive Barker, Clive Barker's Hellraiser, Vol. 1.*

 

October:

• Alana Fairchild (author) and Jimmy Manton (artist), Kali Oracle: Ferocious Grace and Supreme Protection with the Wild Divine Mother (kit with deck and companion book).
• Guy Haley, Flesh and Steel: a Noctis and Lux Novel (Warhammer Crime). 
• Greg Pak, Star Wars Age of Rebellion: Villains.
• Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale, Batman: The Long Halloween.*
• Jim Davis, Garfied Fat Cat 3-Pack, Vol. 14.*
• Karin Lee (creator) and Kipling West (author), The Halloween Tarot (kit with deck and companion book).
   

 November: 

• Katie-Jane Wright (author) and Nikki Strange (artist), Spirit Animal Wisdom oracle cards (kit with deck and companion book).
• Karen Kuykendall, Tarot of the Cat People (kith with deck and companion book).
• Sherry Shone, Hoodoo for Everyone: Modern Approaches to Magic, Conjure, Rootwork, and Liberation.
• Jennifer Jacquet, The Playbook: How to Deny Science, Sell Lies, and Make a Killing in the Corporate World. 
• Amelia Pang, Made in China: A Prisoner, an SOS Letter, and the Hidden Cost of America's Cheap Goods. 
• Jake Richards, Backwoods Witchcraft: Conjure Folk Magic from Appalachia.
• John Severin, Bomb Run and Other Stories. 
• James Swallow, Nemesis (Horus Heresy, Book 13). 

 

December: 

• Jessica Dore, Tarot for Change: Using the Cards for Self-Care, Acceptance, and Growth.
• Andrew Kirtzman, Giuliani: The Rise and Tragic Fall of America's Mayor.
• Stan Sakai, Usagi Yojimbo: Bunraku and Other Stories. 
• Claire Cock-Starkey, A Library Miscellany.
• Ann Rule, Lust Killer. 

 

Number of books read in 2022:  82, including 5 re-reads.

 

Number of books reading in 2021: 69, including 3 re-reads (the 2021 list).

Number of books read in 2020: 80, including 5 re-reads (the 2020 list).

Number of books read in 2019: 72   (the 2019 list).

Number of books read in 2018: 74, including 2 re-reads (the 2018 list).
Number of books read in 2017: 84 (the 2017 list).
Number of books read in 2016: 92, including re-reads (the 2016 list).
Number of books read in 2015: 123, including 2 re-reads (the 2015 list).
Number of books read in 2014: 152, including 2 re-reads (the 2014 list).
Number of books read in 2013: 173, including 2 re-reads (the 2013 list).
Number of books read in 2012: 117, with 6 re-reads (the 2012 list).
Number of books read in 2011: 119, with 3 re-reads (the 2011 list). 
Number of books read in 2010:  119, with 6 rereads (the 2010 list).
Number of books read in 2009: 98, with 5 rereads. I believe this is the first time I started to actively track rereads. (the 2009 list).
Number of books read in 2008: 111 (the 2008 list).
Number of books read in 2007: 85 (the 2007 list).
Number of books read in 2006: 106 (the 2006 list).
Number of books read in 2005: 73 

 

 

 

 

Commentaries and thoughts on numbers

 

I read a total of 82 books in 2022, including 5 re-reads. That is 13 more books than the previous year of 2021. To be honest, I am a bit surprised that I managed that in the ongoing Hard Times. I think one of the reasons I managed to do it is I focused a bit more on my reading challenges for 2022, and that helped me read a bit more. That may be a strategy to follow in 2023. As before, I am not setting any specific reading goal in terms of number of books to read given the uncertainty of the Hard Times. We'll just see how it goes, and I will be grateful with whatever number I end up at the end of 2023. 

 

In reading challenges for 2022, I completed the two challenges I started this year. For the Mount TBR Reading Challenge, I managed to finish it with one extra book. For the NetGalley/Edelweiss Reading Challenge, I committed to 10 books,and I finished that one with 14 books. Pretty good I would say. As of this post, I have not decided which reading challenges to do for 2023. I will possibly sign up for Mount TBR and NetGalley/Edelweiss Reading Challenges again. Stay tuned. When I decide, I will post the link to my new lists of reading challenges for the year in the right column of this blog.

 

Yes, I am still using GoodReads in a minimalist way to track what I read. This was the year I decided to test out some alternatives to GR. I opened accounts and started trying out BookWyrm (link to my profile) and Storygraph. To be perfectly honest, while I am intrigued by their potential, if they have hopes I would leave GoodReads completely to go over to one of them they can pretty much forget about at this time. A big issue for both of those services for starters is their extremely poor bibliographic data and cataloging. BW is the worse of the two, but Storygraph is not that much better. For BW, the fact it is part of the Fediverse is a mixed bag. It is decentralized, but it can suffer some of the same performance issues that Mastodon has been having lately due to growth. When you want to do something simple like add a book to your reading list, and the site just goes down, that is frustrating. And before anyone protests "oh, but GoodReads is owned by Amazon, more robust structure, blah blah," yes, one I am fully aware, and two, I have been with GR since before the Big A bought them, and from experience I can tell you they've gotten worse over time. That is why I am hoping for an alternative, but at this point the alternatives, which are touting themselves as alternatives to leave GR, are just not there yet. They have a lot of work to go if they want people, regular people, to take them seriously. For now, I will keep BW and Storygraph, and I will write a review for both on this blog when I feel I've had enough time to really get a feel for them. On a side note, I do have an account on Library Thing that I have not used, but it is active. I may go back and give another go  to Library Thing. We'll see how that goes.

 

Let's have a look at my reading numbers for 2022:

Book re-read: 5

Best reading month: April with 12 books.

Worst reading month: August with 3 books. 

 

Number of books read in print:  50.

Number of books read as e-books: 32, this includes books read via Netgalley and Edelweiss as well as any e-books from the public library, say via Hoopla, Overdrive, etc.

Number of books read as audiobooks: 0. I did not pay much attention to this format in 2022. I am not a huge fan, but I am good reading in audio once in a while. We'll see if we add one or two audiobooks in 2023. 

Number of graphic novels (includes graphic novels and comics, not manga): 28.

Number of manga: 4.

Nonfiction: 42

Fiction (does not include mange nor GN): 9. This is pretty consistent for me. I tend to read more nonfiction than I read fiction. To be honest, 9 pieces of fiction this year is pretty good for me. 

Library books: 

• Public Library (mainly from Berea branch, Madison County, KY Public Library):23.
• Hoopla:1.
• Overdrive: 0.
  
• Hutchins Library: 8.
• ILL (via Hutchins): 1.
  

 

Books I own: 18. As I look back on this, had I read 6 more I could have made the next level of the 2022 Mount TBR Reading Challenge. I completed the challenge with 13 books (needed 12 to complete the first level).

 

Books borrowed from anyone (not family) or recommended by others: 0

 

Other numbers of interest (to me at least):

• Erotica: 1. I've mentioned this before, but Hard Times are not conducive to reading erotica for me. Nothing ruins the mood for this kind of reading faster than the clusterfuck shit show we live in these days.
• LIS, including reference works: 9
• Tarot and oracle: 9, including companion books for specific decks.
• Other esoterica/pagan/spirituality: 7.
• NetGalley: 26
• Edelweiss: 2
• Other books offered for review, not from NetGalley nor Edelweiss. These may be books I got from a publisher, an author, etc. because I requested or they were offered for review: 2.
• Books in Spanish: 1. I am just not finding much of interest to read in Spanish. The local public library's Spanish offerings are fairly poor, and they mostly feature Spanish translations of pop English books like celebrity biographies and self-help books that I could read in English just fine if I was interested. One way I often do find something to read in Spanish is because a book somehow hits it big enough to get a translation in English, and I go back and find the Spanish original. 
• True Crime: 4.
• Food and Drink: 2.
• Poetry:1.
• (New category this year) Books that broke the "reading moratorium": 7. I want this number to be zero or as close to zero as I can get it, so 7 out of 82 is not too bad. One of these was the poetry book. This is the first time I track this category, so we'll see how it goes in 2023. 

This time last year I was reading the following books. I did finish them, and I reviewed them. Links go to my reviews:

• Leanna Greenaway, Catalog of the Unexplained.
• Sinclair Sexsmith.ed., Best Lesbian Erotica of the Year, Volume 6.
• Jim Davis, Garfield Fat Cat 3-Pack, Volume 22.
• Anthony M. DeStefano, The Deadly Don: Vito Genovese, Mafia Boss.
• Juan Villoro, Horizontal Vertigo: a City Called Mexico.
  

 

As we start 2023, I am reading the following books. This was a rare year where I finished everything I had from 2022 before the end of the year, so I am starting with new to me books: 

• Brian Keene, Earthworm Gods.
• David G. Marwell, Mengele: Unmasking the Angel of Death.
• Joe Benitez, Lady Mechanika, Volume 1: the Mystery of the Mechanical Corpse.
• Ru-Lee Story, Your Tarot Toolkit: Simple Activities for your Daily Practice.
  

 

Finally, to close this post, here is a small list of of other bloggers who have done end of year lists, compilations, etc. To be honest, this part of the post keeps getting harder over time as bloggers either go on hiatus for various reasons or just go extinct. Makes me a bit more grateful I am still willing and able to keep blogging. The list is in no particular order: 

• Jessamyn West's 2022 Reading List with commentary.
• Angel's Guilty Pleasures did their top 10 books of 2022.
• Feed your Fiction Addiction has their list of top ten books of 2022.
• Socrates' Book Reviews made their list of favorite books in 2022.
• That Artsy Reader Girl has her list of ten for 2022 too. They also did their 2022 End of Year Book Survey. I like how their survey is in neat, easy to read categories.
  
• Joshua Kim lists their books reviewed in 2022.
• Based on a True Story did their 2022 Reading Year in Review.
• RA for All has the best books they read in 2022.
• Bookwyrm's Hoard Favorites of 2022.
• The Manga Critic offers their choices for best and worst manga of 2022.