Author: knari

Boris Akunin “Not Saying Goodbye”

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So, according to the author, the long story of Erast Fandorin has come to an end. He was “buried” before, like in Black City when he was supposedly shot in the head. But now, Boris Akunin has officially declared that it’s over—no more adventures. And it’s true; fifteen full novels have been released (or more, depending on how you count).

It all started with The Winter Queen, where an enthusiastic young man was fatefully drawn into a global conspiracy. Honestly, when the Erast Fandorin craze began, I was hesitant for a long time, since I don’t like following trends. But then the movie came out, and I finally decided to read it. And I was completely hooked. I binge-read everything that was available at that point and then eagerly devoured each new book as soon as it was published.

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Neil Gaiman “American Gods”

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The novel American Gods had been on my radar for a long time; the synopsis seemed intriguing. But for some reason, I never got around to reading it. Then, out of the blue, the Americans started adapting it into a TV series, and the book began getting advertised everywhere again. Several acquaintances read it, my wife too… so I had no choice.

I read the novel fairly quickly but took a long time to gather my thoughts to write a detailed opinion. I rated it right away, but as to why—that required some reflection.

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Philip Zimbardo “The Lucifer Effect. Understanding How Good People Turn Evil”

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Many have heard of the Stanford Prison Experiment or watched movies inspired by it, but few know the details or the man behind it. Philip Zimbardo is the one who conducted this experiment about 30 years ago. His book The Lucifer Effect is dedicated to several key questions. A large portion of it is a chronological account of the famous experiment and an analysis of its findings. Another significant part is a detailed examination of the Abu Ghraib prison scandal, where Zimbardo testified on behalf of one of the accused soldiers. Between these two sections, the author tries to explain the nature of evil. His main point: no one can be sure that, under certain conditions, they wouldn’t turn into a “Lucifer.” At the end of the book, he offers advice on how to prevent oneself from falling into evil.

Since the book is written by the author of the Stanford experiment himself, it’s hard to imagine anyone presenting the subject more thoroughly or thoughtfully. But this is also where the book’s downside lies. There are too many details, and the same ideas are often repeated. At some point, it starts to feel rather tedious.

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Olga Gromyko “As*troheads: Nearby”

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The book “As*troheads: Nearby” by Olga Gromyko is the sixth in the “As*troheads” series. Like the previous book in the cycle, “As*troheads: Before, Between, After“, this two-volume set is another collection of novellas and short stories.

However, I’ve noticed some clear differences. The works in the previous book were loosely connected: two novellas were tied by events, but the rest were simply sketches about beloved characters, some of which didn’t even qualify as full-fledged stories—just brief jokes on the theme.

In “As*troheads: Nearby”, there is a clear chronology of events, and many of the novellas and stories continue from previous ones in the same book. But the most important difference is that this collection introduces a new overarching theme.

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2017 Recap: Best Books

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A lot was accomplished this year, and even more was read. So, my year-end recap for 2017 will focus on books. I’ll choose the best ones and assign categories.

  1. Category “No Comment”: Anna Starobinets “Look at Him“.
  2. Category “A Changing World”: Darren Todd “Pirate Nation” — an excellent portrayal of how digital piracy is reshaping norms.
  3. Category “We Are All Different”: Erin Meyer “The Culture Map” — a book about cultural differences and how they hinder our communication.
  4. Category “A Comic Not for Everyone”: “Saga“ — I rarely read comics, but Saga unexpectedly caught my attention. It’s very strange and definitely 18+.
  5. Category “Strangely About Everything”: Alexey Markov “Hoolinomics” — a look at modern economics through unconventional language.
  6. Category “Games Are a Craft”: Scott Rogers “Level Up! The Guide to Great Video Game Design” — with humor and plenty of illustrations, it shows that making games isn’t magic; it’s something you can learn and apply with enjoyment.

Erin Mayer “The Culture Map: Breaking Through the Invisible Boundaries of Global Business”

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Let’s consider an example: an employee (French) and her boss (American) are discussing her work performance. The employee leaves the conversation feeling inspired—she’s exceeding expectations, and she is one of the best. Meanwhile, the boss is left puzzled—he’s tried every way possible to point out how many issues there are in her work, her behavior is inappropriate, but she seems to be ignoring everything he’s said. Think this couldn’t happen? Oh, it certainly can! They’re both acting and interpreting each other based on the cultural codes they absorbed growing up.

I would’ve been just as puzzled myself if I hadn’t interacted with people from all over the world at work. I’ve seen and experienced situations like this firsthand. Knowing just a common language isn’t enough because your personal experiences and cultural background unconsciously shape your behavior, and you evaluate others through the lens of your own cultural perspective.

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Healthcare in Cyprus

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Let’s continue the topic of life in Cyprus by talking about healthcare, which, surprisingly, does exist here too.

My experience with doctors is probably not very comprehensive, mainly because I have family health insurance, so I don’t know much about how to get treatment in Cyprus if you don’t have insurance.

In my case, all doctors are paid (although there probably aren’t any “free” ones—sometimes someone else just covers the cost, like insurance or the government). My insurance works like this: you pay for the doctor yourself, then submit a claim to the insurance company, they review it, and reimburse you (or they don’t, but that’s rare). Our specific type of insurance has an annual deductible, which is roughly equal to one visit to the doctor. Dental treatment is minimally covered (although my insurance covered 95% of my root canal treatment for one tooth). Vaccines for children aren’t covered at all, and they’re not cheap. However, if you’re treated in a hospital, the doctor and the insurance agent agree on the treatment in advance, and you don’t pay anything. But still—insurance policies vary, so it depends.

In general, healthcare is expensive, even compared to private healthcare in Belarus. But let’s go step by step.

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Olga Gromyko “As*troheads: Before, Between, After”

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“As*troheads” (earlier versions known as “As*trobiologists”) is the second long-running series by Belarusian writer Olga Gromyko. Her first series, about a witch, brought Olga recognition and a dedicated fanbase. Since then, she has written standalone books and smaller series, but “As*troheads” has been around for over six years, and the adventures of the characters are far from over (in fact, a new two-volume edition was just released).

The book “As*troheads: Before, Between, After” is the fifth in the series, but chronologically, it spans across various points in time, as the title suggests. It’s not a single narrative but rather a collection of novellas and short stories that cover events from before the first book to after the fourth.

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Alexey Markov “Hoolinomics. Rogue Economics. Financial Markets for Those Who Couldn’t Care Less”

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Honestly, I came across this book completely by chance, and it was the title that grabbed my attention. So, kudos to the marketers (or maybe the author himself) for that.

The topic of economics and finance has always interested me, but somehow it always eluded me. In my work, I often approach projects from a business and budget perspective, but as a science, economics never really clicked for me. It all started at university, where I managed to score a failing grade on my economics exam. Over the summer, I read Economics, really got into it, and almost got a perfect score on the retake, but I declined an additional question because I just didn’t expect to go from failing to excellent.

Since then, the subject has popped up now and then—after all, work is always about business, and business is always about finance and economics.

But let’s get back to the book.

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Want to make money? Don’t work

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I’ll start writing bit by bit about life in Cyprus. After all, we’ve already lived here for three and a half years.

Cyprus, like many warm countries, is quite laid-back. People start working pretty early, but after lunch, most establishments are closed, and at best, they might be working but not serving customers. This applies not only to government offices—banks follow the same pattern. I remember being really frustrated at first: how is it possible that after 1 p.m., I can’t go to the bank? Especially considering that back in Minsk, my bank branch not only worked late into the evening, but on Saturdays and Sundays, there was always at least one clerk available. On Sundays, Carl!

There are plenty of examples of this shortened workday. The café across from the office does great during lunch, with our staff and PwC employees from next door heading there. But by around 3:30 p.m., it’s already closed. Want a late snack? You’ll have to find somewhere else.

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