https://www.gudupublishing.com/bete-noire daily 0.75 2025-07-25 https://www.gudupublishing.com/bete-noire/conformity-and-our-social-masks monthly 0.5 2025-07-25 https://www.gudupublishing.com/bete-noire/our-cult-of-smart-part-1 monthly 0.5 2025-07-25 https://www.gudupublishing.com/bete-noire/our-cult-of-smart-part-2 monthly 0.5 2025-07-25 https://www.gudupublishing.com/bete-noire/visible-consumption-invisible-poverty monthly 0.5 2025-07-25 https://www.gudupublishing.com/bete-noire/the-prejudice-of-language monthly 0.5 2025-07-25 https://www.gudupublishing.com/bete-noire/this-new-class-of-outsiders monthly 0.5 2025-07-25 https://www.gudupublishing.com/dig-deeper daily 0.75 2026-02-08 https://www.gudupublishing.com/dig-deeper/a-word-of-advice monthly 0.5 2026-03-03 https://www.gudupublishing.com/dig-deeper/the-folly-of-cultural-conservatives monthly 0.5 2026-02-08 https://www.gudupublishing.com/dig-deeper/the-misunderstood-intellectual monthly 0.5 2025-07-24 https://www.gudupublishing.com/dig-deeper/fiqir-eske-meqabir monthly 0.5 2025-07-24 https://www.gudupublishing.com/dig-deeper/the-relevance-of-a-350-year-old-hateta monthly 0.5 2025-07-24 https://www.gudupublishing.com/book-summaries daily 0.75 2026-03-21 https://www.gudupublishing.com/book-summaries/the-subjection-of-women monthly 0.5 2026-03-21 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/631362b71c55035e3ca22802/1772164369938-CVAU6VELHLZ22TIPV1ME/Subjection+of+Women.jpeg Book Summaries - Mill’s The Subjection of Women Subjection noun : As in conquest, the act or process of bringing someone under one's control. origin : 1300–1350; Middle English, from Latin subjectio (a throwing under) Subjection isn't a word we use in our everyday conversations. But it's been on my mind recently, especially since reading John Stuart Mill’s book on this very phenomenon. Published in 1869, “The Subjection of Women” isn't as popular, nor as widely discussed, as his more canonical works. Go talk to your politically minded friends or family (like I have), go listen to your favorite political figure (like I've had to), or go seek out those political analysts and their popular shows (like I wish I didn't) and you'll quickly notice one thing. You’ll notice that Mill's other works, like “Principles of Political Economy”, “On Liberty”, and “Utilitarianism”, have left a far more lasting impression. Especially in Ethiopia. In this respect, Mill has become a sort of touchstone for our politically minded, philosophically inclined yet argumentative countrymen who have a particularly annoying habit: the habit of referring to themselves as Ethiopia’s political “elites”. He has, in effect, become their theoretical armor. He has become their rhetorical weapon of choice. But, more importantly, he is who they rely on to dominate political discussions. However, in their rush to gain cheap victories and even cheaper credibility, our self-appointed “elites” have overlooked a few things. They’ve overlooked a book that is as profound as it is far-reaching. They’ve overlooked Mill’s deeply held beliefs about those values that we so readily associate with democracy. Values like equality, freedom, and autonomy. And they’ve overlooked the fact that these values don't just apply to the political sphere. He also extended them to the social, the cultural, and even the most private aspects of our lives. Which is why “The Subjection of Women” is a must-read for those Ethiopians who fancy themselves as defenders of democracy. It will challenge your belief that democratic values should only be invoked when it's about our political rights. It will make you question why words like subjection, repression, and oppression are only ever used to criticize state power. And, most crucially, it will draw you to a very important institution that isn't usually seen through the lens of democratic values: ትዳር. By focusing on the relationship between husband and wife, “The Subjection of Women” confronts you, me, and our self-appointed political “elites” with a very important question: If we can't uphold these values within our own homes, if we can't practice equality in our most intimate of relationships, how can we seriously claim to defend the rights and freedoms of strangers? https://www.gudupublishing.com/book-summaries/democracy-and-social-ethics monthly 0.5 2026-02-27 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/631362b71c55035e3ca22802/f3bf7f45-bff3-48cd-be81-8f15f7f95c67/71WvAVyooZL.jpg Book Summaries - Addams’ Democracy & Social Ethics  Over a hundred years ago, an American author wrote a book about her country's moral failings. But in doing so, she also held up a mirror to societies like ours. Published in 1902, Democracy and Social Ethics isn’t special simply because it was written by a Nobel Prize winner. Nor is it unique for its critique of America’s supposedly “democratic” culture. No, what makes this book special, especially for us Ethiopians, is that it gives us a scathing and relevant take on societies like ours. Societies that are extremely hierarchical. Now some might be interested in this book simply because it was written by Jane Addams, a courageous and progressive woman that was born in the 1860s. Others might appreciate the substance of her arguments, particularly her take on materialism, gender equality, and the rigid structures of privilege in American society. But I know that some Ethiopians, especially those who solely judge a book by its title, have come to believe that Democracy and Social Ethics is about one simple idea: cultural determinism. I imagine most, if not all of you, are very familiar with this idea. In fact, I am sure you have at least one politically minded person in your life who, because of either disappointment or ignorance, swears that a democratic system can never be established in Ethiopia. You might hear them argue that we are, by definition, an undemocratic people; that we have not developed like Western countries; that we, when it comes down to it, don't put much faith in democratic ideals. You might even hear them say that most Ethiopians prefer a “ጠንካራ መሪ”, for we have a culture that supposedly reveres authority and order more than it respects the rights and freedoms of our fellow citizens. But I wonder if those of us who claim to be more democratic than the average Ethiopian are being honest with ourselves. Is this book just about cultural determinism? Are democratic ideals like equality, equity and fairness only meant for outward judgment? Or are they meant for inward reflection and principled action? Well, lucky for us, there is one chapter in Addams’ book that can help us answer these questions. A chapter that, in my mind, will put most of our so-called “democratic” countrymen to shame. A chapter on የቤት ሰራተኞች. Now, I know that most of us don't see this particular social issue through a democratic lens. I know how we are. I know how we fixate on a small set of important, yet limited principles when we talk about democracy. Principles like የህግ የበላይነት, freedom of expression and free and fair elections are usually, if not always, seen as the only markers of a functioning democracy. But to think that democratic norms do not, nor should not, regulate our social relationships is not only a severe misunderstanding of what it means to be a democratic society. It is also a severe misreading of Addams’ book. In this respect, Addams uses the treatment of domestic servants as a way to measure a country's democratic health. She points, for example, to how Americans expected የቤት ሰራተኞች to live in separate and isolated spaces, distanced from the rest of the household. She also notes how they were expected to prepare separate food for themselves, as if their social position excluded them from sharing in the meals they helped make. American employers, she observed, also tried to routinely restrict their personal freedoms and social lives — at times even attempting to regulate their romantic relationships. She even showed how modest requests for time off or reasonable pay were seen as signs of entitlement or ingratitude. Sounds familiar, doesn't it? For Addams, all these behaviors were not just signs of individual misdeeds. Instead, they were signs of a particular kind of collective dysfunction — the kind that not only contributed to the suffering of others. But the kind that also allowed the wrongdoer to remain blind to it. As she put it: “A listener, attentive to a conversation between two employers of household labor — and we certainly all have the opportunity to hear such conversations — would often discover a tone implying that the employer was the abused party.” As such, by framing the mistreatment of የቤት ሰራተኞች as a democratic issue, Addams’ critique of American society and its democratic health should not be ignored. Instead, her take on social ethics, empathetic relationships, and their direct relationship with democratic ideals like equality, equity and dignity makes this book a must read for contemporary Ethiopians. Especially for those of us who claim to be more democratic than our fellow citizens. For what does it say about us, the self-appointed champions of democracy, when we treat የቤት ሰራተኞች in the same way Americans did in the 1800s? What right do we have to claim moral superiority over other Ethiopians if we treat የቤት ሰራተኞች as second class citizens? What kind of people are we when we build our whole lives on the indispensable labor of የቤት ሰራተኞች, only to treat them like they are expendable? What is the point of spending so much time arguing over what to call domestic servants — ገረድ, የቤት ሰራተኛ, ረዳቴ or ቀኝ እጄ — if we don't respect them enough to materially improve their working conditions? Why do we pretend that hiring የቤት ሰራተኞች is an act of generosity — a way of providing employment opportunities— if we refuse to pay them a livable wage? What, my dear reader, does it say about us when we think of democracy as a mere slogan rather than a serious standard in which to judge our own actions? Some, I imagine, might call us unethical. Addams, I am sure, would call us undemocratic. But I want to be honest and call us out for what we really are. For there is an Amharic word that best describes our unethical, undemocratic, and uncaring ways: በዝባዦች https://www.gudupublishing.com/book-summaries/how-to-read-the-air monthly 0.5 2025-04-17 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/631362b71c55035e3ca22802/1729405127938-EY6IDIAMQPC46BHKA248/51j0X3wj53L._AC_UF1000%2C1000_QL80_.jpg Book Summaries - Mengestu’s How to Read the Air How to Read the Air seems, at first, like any other book about the immigrant experience. Published in 2010, this book was written by Dinaw Mengestu; an Ethiopian American who was praised for his first novel, The Beautiful Things that Heaven Bears. It’s on the heels of this success that he wrote How to Read the Air, which, much like his first work, explores how Ethiopians are adjusting to life in the United States. And even though Mengestu was criticized for repeatedly writing about immigration and the complexities of diaspora life, there is a lesson in his second book that has been severely overlooked. Especially by readers here at home. So, let’s get into it. How to Read the Air follows the life of Yosef and Mariam, a husband and wife that migrate to the United States in search of a better life. Their expectations, as hopeful as they were grand, would soon be tempered by some harsh realities. Whether it was racial prejudice, social exclusion or the economic hardships they faced, their time in the United States was not at all what they thought it would be. In time, they would not only begin to resent each other. They would also feel frustrated, isolated and come to regret their decision to leave Ethiopia. And as their marriage takes the brunt of these feelings, they would have a son called Jonas. Who, like them, would have a complicated relationship with both Ethiopia and the United States. Now some readers have blamed Yosef for his family’s discontent, as his unpredictable and violent ways were too much for his dependent wife and vulnerable son. Others have chosen to blame Mariam, as her emotionally guarded attitude did not help Jonas understand why he felt so anxious and alienated in the United States. But such readings tend to overlook, or at the very least downplay, one of the book's most important lesson. You can, for example, find this lesson in this quote from Mariam: “No one had ever told me what happened in those places. The only thing we had ever really learned in school about America was that it was very rich…” You can also find this lesson in Yosef’s views on his move to the United States. And as his certainty of having a comfortable life in the West was met with the painful reality of what waited for him, he would say this: “You have no idea what I’ve been through. If I could start all over again I would. I’d go back to my father’s house and I’d stay there forever. I’d become a farmer. I’d die in the same place I was born.” But, most importantly, you see this lesson crystalizing in the reflections of their son. Whether it’s seeing how much his parents sacrificed, how much they were unhappy or how they ultimately resented each other, Jonas slowly realizes what causes such profound disappointment in his, and many other, immigrant households: “When it came to Europe or America, men supposedly hardened by time and experience were susceptible to almost childish fantasies. They assigned to these faraway lands all the ideals of benevolence and good governance lacking in their own, because who among us doesn't want to believe that such places exist." This, in my mind, is what makes this book so special. And as Ethiopian readers continue to view this novel as a story about the failings of two unlucky immigrants, a more nuanced reading would not only be insightful to us. It would also be extremely useful. For we would learn an important lesson. A lesson that Dinaw Mengestu is trying to teach us. A lesson on How to Read the Air. For one of the main reasons why so many immigrant dreams turn into diasporic discontent is because we don't care to examine our deeply held assumptions about the West and what life is really like there. And the more we delude ourselves for the sake of our ambition, our idealism and our deep longing for a better life, the more we, and our loved ones, suffer the brunt of our uninformed, unrealistic and unrealized expectations. So the next time you find yourself daydreaming about your imagined life in the West, do yourself and your loved ones a favor: Try to remember Dinaw Mengestu’s How to Read the Air. Try to learn from Yosef, Mariam and Jonas. Try to understand, objectively, what life is really like in these places that you have placed so much faith in. Try to read about these societies. Try to ask those diasporas that are willing to openly and honestly tell you about their adoptive countries. And even if you don't like what you read or hear, don't be so quick to dismiss the lived experiences of so many people for the sake of unchecked ambition. Never forget that it’s easy to doubt everything when you know nothing. So try to see the value in being critical of your preconceived ideas. Make it a habit to never substitute your informed judgment with your naive assumptions or the unexamined beliefs of others. And the more you do that, the more your loved ones will thank you for it. For you are one step closer to avoiding the type of disappointment, frustration and resentment that is as common as it’s thinly veiled in our diaspora community. https://www.gudupublishing.com/book-summaries/on-bullshit monthly 0.5 2024-10-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/631362b71c55035e3ca22802/5705d7fa-4626-4e43-a2a1-d72f00fc3eaa/9780691122946.jpg Book Summaries - Frankfurt’s On Bullshit Harry Frankfurt was, by most accounts, an accomplished academic. Spending a better part of 40 years teaching moral philosophy, his long career as an Ivy League professor/philosopher might be surprising to some. Especially to those that solely judged him by the title of his most famous book. Published in 2005, On Bullshit is a thought-provoking and engaging book that received much attention in academic circles. Some attribute its popularity to its provocative title. Others have attributed its success to the insightful content, rather than the “inappropriate” title, of the book. We at Gudu fall in the latter camp and consider his understanding of bullshit to be particularly relevant to our Ethiopian readership. This is because Frankfurt didn't just describe what bullshit is. He also exposed the motives of its most habitual perpetrators. Which is why On Bullshit is the book to read if we wish to truly understand conformist societies. I.e. societies where the consequences of nonconformity are much more serious than the consequences of lying. And whilst both the liar and the bullshitter aim to deceive, Frankfurt argues that the liar simply misrepresents the content of their statement. The bullshitter, on the other hand, is only concerned about how they are seen by others. And in their efforts to communicate a certain image of themselves, they are neither interested in understanding the truth nor are they interested in accurately reporting it. They are only concerned about how their statement strengthens their public image. So, what does this mean for societies like ours? What happens when the pressures of conformity and the consequences of deviancy leave little room for honestly communicating our thoughts? Well, it’s no surprise that a person who is forced to act a certain way is likely to be concerned about what others think of them. And a person who is threatened by stigmatization and ridicule is likely to create and maintain a socially acceptable public image. Authenticity and truth be damned. In this respect, On Bullshit is particularly helpful to those that wish to understand our loudly traditionalist yet ethically ambivalent countrymen. For in their efforts to appear respectable, acceptable and conventional, we find that they resort to a particular set of tactics. Tactics that are more concerned with convincingly portraying a certain image of themselves rather than any type of interest in communicating diverse, nuanced and informed perspectives about our culture. And although authors like ዘርዓያቆብ, ወልደ ሕይወት, ግርማቸው ተክለ ሐዋርያት, ከበደ ሚካኤል and ዓለማየሁ ሞገስ have long written about the personal toll of performing compliance, Frankfurt’s perspective gives us a better understanding of this phenomenon. Especially when it comes to the social price we pay for the mere appearance of conformity. For a society that relentlessly socializes, controls and punishes its members will also teach them how to fabricate and convincingly perform an acceptable public image. https://www.gudupublishing.com/book-summaries/the-man-in-the-gray-flannel-suit monthly 0.5 2024-10-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/631362b71c55035e3ca22802/c2beb2a7-d5a3-41b0-8004-453bf0c419b1/Cover.jpg Book Summaries - Wilson’s The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit Do you ever feel like your job isn’t as fulfilling as you thought it would be? Maybe you feel undervalued/underpaid by your boss? Or maybe you wish you worked at a place where you could express your opinions, inputs and disagreements without fear of judgement or repercussions? If you’ve felt like this, then we have the book for you. Published in 1955, The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit explores the personal and professional life of Tom Rath. Back from fighting a world war, Tom quits his rewarding job at an NGO for a better paying corporate one in New York City. Although motivated by his desire to provide for his family, he soon starts to regret this decision. He begins to grapple with the unreasonable demands of his new position; where blind ambition, social expectations, self-censorship and performing menial tasks don’t sit well with his sense of morality and his need for fulfilling work. And it’s in the midst of this conflict between financial security and personal-fulfillment that the book explores how much we pay for a better pay. Whether it’s the overbearing boss, the unstimulating workload or the consequences of nonconformity, Tom’s experience is one that’s as relatable as it’s familiar. For his is the type of work life that has couched itself comfortably between job dissatisfaction, career insecurity and performed gratitude. Where the employee’s self-esteem and success aren’t tied to their actual performance of meaningful work. Instead, they’re determined by how much the employee appears to conform to the immediate needs, contradictory values and unrelenting hierarchy of their organization. To that end, Wilson’s clarity and creativity when engaging with these themes makes this book a must read for us Ethiopians. For our desire for financial security comes at a hefty price. Especially since we continue to equate education with financial security, success with external validation and independence with borderline insubordination. And given that we’re in the midst of a national unemployment crisis, we’re routinely discouraged from voicing our occupational discontents. Instead, we’re asked questions like: Isn’t being underemployed much better than not being employed at all? Isn’t having a controlling and insensitive boss better than not earning a living? Isn’t having an unstimulating workload better than not working? And it’s because of this fear of losing what we already have that we do what we do. We give in. We cover our career insecurities and personal dissatisfaction with the compliant smile, the feigned agreeability and the performative gratitude that is expected of an up-and-coming employee. Which is why The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit is not only a must-read for the Ethiopian professional; it’s also a befitting metaphor. For what better way is there to mask our dissatisfaction than to put on our well-tailored symbol for success, respectability and stoic professionalism? https://www.gudupublishing.com/book-summaries/living-law-reconsidering-eugen-ehrlich monthly 0.5 2024-10-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/631362b71c55035e3ca22802/766a5cf5-afdb-4490-ba1e-a34dd7b0ea35/Cover.jpg Book Summaries - Living Law: Reconsidering Eugen Ehrlich I wonder, what is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear someone say "legal philosophy"? I suspect that some of you might find this topic to be too theoretical. Others might say that it's inaccessible; that the amount of legal jargon makes this topic either too boring or unclear. And those of you who overcome these initial barriers might still find legal philosophy to be too foreign of a topic; for you might think that the way it's discussed is out of touch with the legal sensibilities of the Ethiopian people. But every so often you read about someone that’s neither too theoretical nor out of touch with our legal sensibilities. And Living Law: Reconsidering Eugen Ehrlich is a book about a legal philosopher that fits this description. Published in 2009, this book explores the life and contributions of Eugen Ehrlich, a man born to a culturally diverse community in southeastern Europe. Influenced by his community’s complex yet collective sense of justice, Ehrlich would go on to write a book about what he saw in his day-to-day life. i.e. that the law, more often than not, is found in the company of social norms. By focusing on how cultural values influence the law and what usually happens when the law goes against our deeply held convictions, Ehrlich was able to persuasively discuss the relationship between the law and the society that drafted it. And although a small fraction of Ehrlich’s writings has since been included into our National Law School Curriculum, little attention has been given to the strong link between our social norms, our state institutions and those who operate within them. But such an oversight does a great disservice to our country’s legal researchers and practitioners. For we’re not only missing out on a very interesting and important field of research. We’re also overlooking the history of our legal system as well as the current debates surrounding some of our laws: which point, without shame or subtlety, to an inconvenient truth. Namely, that our legal system is neither devoid of a cultural context nor has it ever been immune to the influences of our social psychology. In this respect, Living Law: Reconsidering Eugen Ehrlich does a great job in properly contextualizing Ehrlich’s philosophy. By bringing together scholars from various disciplines, this book gives readers a diverse, balanced and much needed introduction into the Sociology of Law and its founding father. But what makes this book a must read for us Ethiopians is its ability to clearly investigate patterns that we so readily see in our beloved country. For some of us have come to the slow but steady realization that our failure to achieve social justice doesn’t solely lie in the lack of progressive/rights-based initiatives. That the responsibility for such failures also lie in those judges, parliamentarians, state officials and government employees that have been unable to unshackle themselves from the unquestioned authority of our cultural values. And if you ever need examples of implicit bias and the influence of social norms in our state institutions, be sure to read our Living Law pieces by clicking here. https://www.gudupublishing.com/book-summaries/nationalism monthly 0.5 2024-10-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/631362b71c55035e3ca22802/d1785248-430f-4bf1-8a91-be60660f35dc/Cover+Photo.jpg Book Summaries - Tagore’s Cultural Nationalism In 1917, a Nobel Prize winning poet published a book called Nationalism. Using his engaging and creative style, this writer explored the type of public mood that was found in three different societies. The type of communities that were steeped in colonial attitudes, patriotic sentiments and liberation struggles. What he found in these communities, and later criticized, has since made him very respected in some circles. It has also made him a hated figure in more conservative ones. For he not only criticized those that had a romantic and ahistorical fixation with the past. He also challenged the type of rigid traditionalism that would serve the most brutal of punishments on any of its critics. In favor of a more tempered approach, Rabindranath Tagore’s conception of “a patriot” is important because it is accommodating. It is a worldview that prioritizes tolerance over prejudice; reasoned and informed discourse over the tyranny of a misunderstood past; and social empathy over the automatic and unquestioned acceptance of “how things are done”. By advocating for what some have since called “dissenting nationalism”, this book does not call for a return to the good old days. Neither does it call for the glorification/imitation of western culture. Instead, Tagore’s idea of “love of country” is one that celebrates as well as seeks to realize a country’s highest ideals. The type of principles that are codified in a country’s legal code just as much as they are in its cultural domain. And it is when we try to live up to these ideals of tolerance, respect, equality and collective wellbeing that we not only become responsible citizens. We also become good patriots. And although Tagore has been overshadowed by his more famous peers, his contributions have withstood the test of time. Which is why this book is as relevant in today’s Ethiopia as it was in the colonial era of the 1900s. For our current brand of nationalism tends to prescribe rather than accommodate. Where the very immobility of our social norms is considered as a sign of their perfection. And questioning them, showing interest in how others live or what they value, even if these “others” are one of our own, is seen as a betrayal. And the principles of freedom of expression, tolerance and equality? Well, they are fine so long as they don’t challenge our current cultural condition. Leaving us with a type of cultural nationalism that not only overlooks the diversity of thought that comes from living in an ancient and diverse country. But the type that also ignores the impossibility of glorifying yet simultaneously stereotyping 120 million people. https://www.gudupublishing.com/book-summaries/the-power-of-continuity monthly 0.5 2024-10-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/631362b71c55035e3ca22802/c469b68e-ad72-4f46-a1cb-672d2669b010/41WHDK419ZL._AC_UF1000%2C1000_QL80_.jpg Book Summaries - Poluha’s The Power of Continuity As one of her lesser-known works, Eva Poluha’s the Power of Continuity was published in 2004 and has been overlooked ever since. By exploring how a group of students interact with their peers as well as their teachers, this book analyzes how social norms and cultural conformity are instilled in Ethiopian children. Providing a very interesting and revealing window into how children recreate many of the social attitudes they see around them. Especially when it comes to matters of gender, social status and the type of automatic obedience that is owed to authority figures. Given Poluha’s long and storied background in the field of sociology, as well as her over 30 years’ of experience in researching and living in Ethiopia, it would be wrong to hastily dismiss the Power of Continuity. As she not only builds on the well-established idea that schools are heavily influenced by the society they serve. She also highlights how institutions of learning are active participants in prioritizing and reinforcing certain social attitudes at the expense of others. And although this book has received some attention in academic circles, its impact on public opinion, especially in Ethiopia, has left much to be desired. For whatever small influence it has managed to achieve in our country, the Power of Continuity has been unable to transcend our very loud and myopic brand of educational discourse. Where the ideal student is characterized as an obedient and timid pupil that is more concerned with following established ideas and rules of behavior than questioning those that seek to regulate their educational and social lives. But if you are someone that places stock in dynamic and critical students that actually reflect on what they’re told to memorize, then this is the book for you. With its 20-year anniversary right around the corner, the Power of Continuity gives us a clear explanation as to why hierarchical, deferential and conformist attitudes have not only persisted in contemporary Ethiopia. But also how they limit our children’s ability to be the active, informed and independent citizens we claim we want them to be. And although such a perspective might be off-putting to those of us that went through this type of socialization, this book can also benefit us. As it might help us understand why we still, even in our adult lives, feel the need to conform, seek validation from others, and adhere to some imagined or pre-determined role - be it due to our gender, age, educational level or social status. https://www.gudupublishing.com/book-summaries/trust monthly 0.5 2024-10-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/631362b71c55035e3ca22802/b86a2f10-13b9-4aab-aa28-98ed451ab0e8/image-asset.jpeg Book Summaries - Diaz’s Trust Hernan Diaz’s celebrated second novel, Trust, is a story about a New York investor who, along with his wife, gets rich by predicting and betting against the stock market crash of 1929. Composed of four separate documents – a novel-within-the-novel, an unfinished manuscript, a memoir and a diary – Trust’s unique structure allows the characters to tell their own stories. Providing the reader with differing and conflicting narratives about the same period, subjects, relationships, and events. With each section of the book challenging the claims of the previous ones, Diaz leaves it to us to discover the truth behind the lives and successes of Mildred and Andrew Bevel. And since its publication in May of 2022, this historical novel has been listed as the book of the year by over 30 publications. It has also won the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for fiction. In retrospect, Trust’s popularity is not that surprising. For this is a book about the reality-warping force of money and the ease with which power can manipulate facts. Where visibility, narratives of success and accolades are molded, assigned and re-purposed by those who, through either wealth or gender, are powerful enough to obscure some inconvenient truths while embellishing others. And this is what makes Trust a very timely and relatable book for our Ethiopian readership. For what better time is there to discuss how power shifts and maneuvers in order to remain in control? Especially when we live in a time of staggering income inequality, high inflation, underemployment and gender disparity. Where any talk of structural solutions to our social and economic woes is silenced by the drivel of the privileged few. The likes of which resemble Trust’s main protagonist. Those so-called “self-made men” who see entrepreneurship as a form of patriotism, prosperity as proof of an individual’s genius and any talk of nationwide hardships as the annoying and unwarranted grumblings of the unlucky and equally unmotivated. All the while exploiting, benefiting from and laying claim on the labor and contributions of those on the lower rungs of our society. So for those of you interested in listening to those who have been forgotten, exploited or silenced by the self-serving success stories of the economically powerful and socially privileged, Trust is the book for you. https://www.gudupublishing.com/book-summaries/the-cult-of-smart monthly 0.5 2024-10-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/631362b71c55035e3ca22802/788d3cdc-3d67-4ee2-b91d-9fd7c520ce18/9781250200372.jpg Book Summaries - DeBoer’s The Cult of Smart Written by an expert in educational policy, deBoer’s the Cult of Smart investigates an unexamined idea that continues to be widely shared in our private, academic and professional lives. This idea being that we have a fair school system that also happens to be the most effective remedy against social and economic inequality. By devoting most of his book to critiquing this claim, as well as the institutions, social norms and academic culture that propagate it, deBoer makes one thing exceedingly clear; continuing to use academic performance as a means to measure a person’s overall worth will always limit us. Especially if we are trying to create an equal and merit-based society. By pointing to socio-economic factors, the intrinsic ability of students as well as the limited brand of intelligence that our schools reward, this book characterizes any society that grants privileges to those that succeed in this “scholastic rat race” in two ways. As purposefully failing to see the inequity it is propagating and as supporting a cruel system that condemns the academically indifferent, sometimes through no fault of their own, to second class citizenship. And if you are wondering why a book about the failings of the American school system is relevant to us Ethiopians, then you are in for a treat. Providing a timely insight into those narrow criteriums that are used to measure intelligence, this book is a must read for those that wish to understand our country’s very own cult of smart and how it propagates the type of competitive and elitist attitudes we are seeing in our institutions of learning. Whether it be our tendency to confuse academic success with personal virtues, self-worth and social status or our pervasive assumption that education is a means to realize the economic roles of our children, deBoer’s the Cult of Smart is a must read for those that continue to equate education with rote learning and academic success with standardized testing and lofty professions. https://www.gudupublishing.com/book-summaries/americanah monthly 0.5 2024-10-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/631362b71c55035e3ca22802/2a95299d-9cf0-46fa-8e56-66257c7b9603/americanah.jpg Book Summaries - Adichie’s Americanah Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s acclaimed third novel, Americanah, follows the story of Ifemulu and Obinze; two ambitious, middle-class teenagers that migrate to the West in search of a better life. Shaped in large part by the media they consumed, conventional wisdom and the incomplete report of other diasporas, Ifemulu and Obinze opted to trade a life of unpredictability and limited choices for their romanticized notions about the U.S. and the U.K. Quickly confronted by the reality of being an African migrant in the West, the characters’ sense of disenchantment, alienation and dislocation leads to them moving back to their newly idealized “home” country. Where they experience a similar sense of alienation and disenchantment. In a plot that spans over 15 years, the bulk of the novel provides a long and vivid account of Ifemulu’s and Obinze’s experiences in the West. And whilst some have continued to describe this book as being a love story or a book about race in America, its importance does not solely lie in such readings. Instead, what has made Americanah a unique entry is its ability to clearly articulate the challenges of leaving home as well as coming back to it. The underlying feeling of otherness that separates those that are conditioned to continually revere the West and those that had to develop a critical awareness of its power structures in order to survive it. With Americanah celebrating its 10th year since its first publication, this book is highly recommended to those that not only view the West as the promise land but to those that continue to otherize the select number of returnees that are critical of their home countries. In this respect, the stereotypes, prejudices and misconceptions that shape the lives and experiences of Americanah’s characters are particularly relevant to our Ethiopian readership. For our skewed perception of life in the West is only matched by how we view and conditionally accept those wishing to return home. An acceptance that is quickly rescinded if our fellow diasporas are brave enough to do what Ifemulu does and question our own ladders of hierarchy; be they based on gender, class, age, ethnicity or other social constructs. https://www.gudupublishing.com/book-summaries/wax-and-gold monthly 0.5 2024-10-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/631362b71c55035e3ca22802/ba04884c-e398-400c-a5f0-21378ccf58be/61fRgrZ7GVL.jpg Book Summaries - Levine’s Wax & Gold Published in 1965, Donald Levine’s Wax and Gold is as much thoughtful as it is fascinating to read. Comprised of seven chapters, Levine not only aspires to understand the use and prevalence of wax and gold, a linguistic tradition of double entendres and deliberate ambiguities, he also uses it as a metaphor. In aspiring to do the latter, Levine’s insightful book seeks to explore mid-to-late-twentieth-century Ethiopian society on the same two levels as wax and gold, using modern sociology and psychology to understand our country’s vague, hierarchical and often uncritically accepted societal relations. Although the book mainly explores the education, socialization as well as the hierarchical traditions of Amhara society, pigeonholing this work as a mere ethnographic work should be avoided. As the underlying sentiment of Levine’s work is anchored in what has since become a well-accepted premise. One that has time and time again held that the rationale behind innovation and the rationale behind tradition might, in some instances, be more similar than different. This is particularly relevant in a country like ours; where the building blocks of our traditional culture, like the importance given to hierarchy, social status and deference, also plays an important role in modern Ethiopian life. Whether it is how we treat the downtrodden in our society (as well as our authority figures) or how we continue to view education and voice social criticism, Levine’s work not only shows us how certain cultural traits have persisted on the national stage; but also how they have thrived in contemporary Ethiopia. It is because of its acute, sensitive and deliberate nature that this book is an excellent starting point for any critique that wishes to understand contemporary Ethiopia and explore its persisting attitudes towards modernization, tradition, hierarchy and the treatment of different sections of our society. https://www.gudupublishing.com/living-law daily 0.75 2026-02-18 https://www.gudupublishing.com/living-law/my-great-grandfather-part-1 monthly 0.5 2026-02-18 https://www.gudupublishing.com/living-law/my-great-grandfather-part-2 monthly 0.5 2026-02-18 https://www.gudupublishing.com/living-law/at-the-mercy-of-our-teachers-part-1 monthly 0.5 2026-02-08 https://www.gudupublishing.com/living-law/at-the-mercy-of-our-teachers-part-2 monthly 0.5 2026-02-08 https://www.gudupublishing.com/living-law/reaching-for-respectability-part-1 monthly 0.5 2025-07-24 https://www.gudupublishing.com/living-law/reaching-for-respectability-part-2 monthly 0.5 2025-07-24 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