Kirkus Reviews QR Code
Random Rationality: Expanded  by Fourat Janabi

Random Rationality: Expanded

A Rational Guide to an Irrational Worl

by Fourat Janabi

Pub Date: March 30th, 2013
Publisher: CreateSpace

Random observations of life and the world, written in a curiously engaging style.

Janabi, a blogger and adventurous world traveler, offers “a basic framework of today’s irrational world,” and he’s clearly unafraid to tackle many of humanity’s most challenging subjects. In this sweeping, five-part volume, he covers science, philosophy, politics, economics and technology. His entries about the story of the universe, the exploration of space and the question of God’s existence may cover little that hasn’t been written about before, and some readers may find the philosophy section somewhat ponderous. But when he rails against politics and prognosticates about the future, Janabi is often on target, insightful and even eloquent. About politicians, he writes, “We are so caught up in the hype of politics every few years—the media blitz, the promises, the demagoguery, and the activism—that we continually forget to ask the question: Why is a politician so relevant in the modern world?” Regarding the world’s future food supply, the author predicts: “Very soon, we will be able to economically grow any type of food locally, using climate-controlled, 24/7 underground/indoor farms and save all that energy we currently use shipping exotic foods from one side of the planet to the other, on more productive pursuits.” He can be righteously indignant, as when he discusses the U.S. government’s ineffectiveness in declaring certain drugs illegal: “The problem is not in whether drugs are illegal or not, but in how they are managed.…It is mind-bogglingly stupid—not to mention unethical—that people are not allowed to do whatever they want to their own bodies.” Indeed, it’s the author’s very indignation that, in part, makes this an engaging read. However, in order to get the most from this encompassing work, readers may need to overlook Janabi’s numerous digressions and his apparent tendency to write more for his own enjoyment than for his audience’s. That said, the author’s prose has a distinct edge throughout.

A sometimes enlightening book that will likely intrigue and amuse many readers, while perhaps leaving them with more questions than answers.