April #WokeratiBookClub
Doc or Quack, by Sander Gilman
No, not my patient feedback (not all of it, anyway) but a look at medicine from the Enlightenment to today
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March #WokeratiBookClub
Super Natural: How life thrives in impossible places, by Alex Riley
Quite interesting. Weirdly, while I knew about sugars cryopreserving frogs, I hadn’t heard of glymphatics (I even googled it to check it wasn’t a typo🤭)
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February #WokeratiBookClub
‘Humble Pi’ by @standupmaths.bsky.social
Lots of examples of what happens when maths goes wrong 😆🧮
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January brings a new #WokeratiBookClub
‘Everything is Tuberculosis’ by @johngreensbluesky.bsky.social
Am about a third of the way through. So far, it’s an engaging tale of TB’s sometimes frankly weird history, interspersed with the touching true story of an African boy suffering chronic illness
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In 2025, I continued my 2024 New Year’s resolution to read a book a month. I called it the #WokeratiBookClub because 2024 was mainly politics & economics. This year I focused on science and read some real corkers (and one I didn’t like). If interested in mini-reviews for each follow the hashtag 📚🥰
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Scouring the bookshops in Cambridge on Christmas Eve. Not yet decided what 2026 #Wokeratibookclub theme will be.
The BBC outside broadcast truck already parked at @kingscollege.bsky.social in readiness for the Nine Lessons and Carols later today 🎄
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December #Wokeratibookclub
The Epigenetics Revolution by Tessa Carey = a good read. Starts slowly and simply—good if you’re not a biologist—then nicely introduces epigenetics and a few of the leading scientists unpicking it.
It’s a bit old, 2011, so pre-dates the Yamanaka / Gurdon
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November’s #Wokeratibookclub is a biography of one of my heroes: Rosalind Franklin by Brenda Maddox. The description of her youth in antisemitic 1920s/30s England gives fascinating historical background. I’ve learned lots already e.g. about her Francophilia and love of hiking. I’d recommend!
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Having finished September’s #Wokeratibookclub book early, I thought I’d make a start on the book I’d picked for October. It’s certainly enjoyable but since my maths & physics are _very_ rusty (A-levels when Margaret Thatcher was still in power), I wonder if I’ve bitten off more than I can chew 😂
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Ending 7 days as the respiratory ward consultant. Tired but pleased to have worked with such doctors, nurses, physios, pharmacists, and many others
Now to unwind reading September’s #Wokeratibookclub
‘How to think about AI’ by Richard Susskind
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Day 6 Ireland: Bantry
To be honest, am still stuffed from a ‘full Irish’ brunch at the English Market in Cork, so currently enjoying a read after a pint of Murphy’s. Will most likely venture out for fidh ‘n chips later.
This month’s #Wokeratibookclub is Sapiens by Yuval Harari
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Reading in the garden is the perfect way to end the day. July’s #Wokeratibookclub has been a pleasant saunter through the history of maths in a very accessible way
‘A little history of Mathematics’ by Snezana Lawrence @snezanalawrence.bsky.social
I recommend 👍
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June #Wokeratibookclub =
‘Blueprints. How mathematics shapes creativity’ by @marcusdusautoy.bsky.social
Read quite a bit on the flight to Cyprus yesterday. Looking forward to learning more about the links between maths and art during a relaxing week by the pool 🇨🇾🧮🎭
And happy Fathers’ Day (UK) 😁
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May #Wokeratibookclub =
‘The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks’ by Rebecca Skloot
Riveting, though at times emotionally quite difficult. A must read for any cell biologist who has ever used HeLa cells. This copy was bought for me years ago. I can’t believe it’s taken me so long to get around to it.
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April #Wokeratibookclub =
‘Neanderthal Man’ by Svante Pääbo
I didn’t post at the time because I didn’t enjoy it & don’t feel able to recommend it. Interesting in places, but I didn’t like the dismissive way minor characters were described. At times almost insulting.
Sorry - a rare negative review
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March #Wokeratibookclub =
‘The elements of Marie Curie*: how the glow of radium lit a path for women in science’ by Dava Sobel
Loved the first chapter. Already learned loads about the great woman
*or ‘Marie Curie Skłodowska’ as the text book in weekend Polish school said when I was little
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My #Wokeratibookclub read for February is The Art of Uncertainty by David Spiegelhalter
He writes so well - pity he isn’t on BlueSky yet
Am really enjoying this book, but confess to having to read some parts twice, e.g. this mind blowing paragraph and footnote
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Day 6 staycation and finished Dennett’s book for my #Wokeratibookclub
Heavy going in places, but worth it for gems like:
“Civilization is a work in progress, and we abandon our attempt to understand it at our peril”
“Orgel's Second Rule: Evolution is cleverer than you are”
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The Catalyst was so good, I finished it early. Fortunately, I have another as January’s #WokeratiBookClub bonus book
‘From bacteria to Bach and back: the evolution of minds’ by Daniel C Dennett
Prof Dennett’s episode of The Life Scientific is a delight (👇link)
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b...
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A new year, a new #WokeratiBookClub cycle. This year, the plan is less politics, more science. Let’s see.
To kick off it’s ‘The Catalyst’ by Thomas R. Cech. A really fun read by the Nobel prize winner for discovering ribozymes
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One of my New Year’s resolutions this year was ‘read a book a month’. This became the #WokeratiBookClub and these were the picks. Thanks everyone for your excellent recommendations. Next year, maybe more science and less politics? 😏
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Enjoying reading (though also infuriated by the subject matter) ‘The deadly rise of anti-science’ by Peter J Hotez, the December #WokeratiBookClub choice
H/t @castltrastondrs.bsky.social for this suggestion
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In an act of pure self-care, I’ll be avoiding most news radio and podcasts for a few days
Apologies to @thenewsagents.bsky.social & @lewisgoodall.bsky.social
In my defence, my November #WokeratiBookClub offering is Strangeland by Jon Sopel
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Spending my sick days enjoying the October #WokeratiBookClub book
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Just listened to yesterday’s @thenewsagents.bsky.social
Ok, @lewisgoodall.bsky.social you win. I’ll buy John’s book as my November read for my #WokeratiBookClub
(It actually sounds quite good)
The October book is ‘The Health Gap’ by Michael Marmot
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The month’s #WokeratiBookClub
‘May Contain Lies’ by Alex Edmams
Books can be read almost anywhere, but am forced to read this one on the beach in Tunisia while staying with family who are posted here for a few years
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Spent a week almost workfree in 🇪🇸 (used the 🇪🇺queue 😆 again). Thoroughly enjoyed the June book in the #WokeratiBookClub, “This Time No Mistakes” by the very impressive @williamnhutton 📚☀️
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July #WokeratiBookClub read
“Great Britain? How we get our future back” by @TorstenBell who just so happens to have been elected @UKLabour MP for Swansea West recently
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On the other place, I was asking for & offering suggestions for an imagined #WokeratiBookClub
This month moving more to here
August’s suggestion ‘Human Rights, the case for the defence’ by Shami Chakrabarti
Suggestions for future reads gratefully received
I’ll recap the previous ones below
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