Anamaria Vere

3.5

This book broke my heart repeatedly and then left me full of despair because no one is going to stop buying their phones or other battery-powered devices just because people in DRC are enslaved and dying so that those batteries can be produced.

“It's the action, not the fruit of the action, that's important. You have to do the right thing. It may not be in your power, may not be in your time, that there'll be any fruit. But that doesn't mean you stop doing the right thing. You may never know what results come from your action. But if you do nothing, there will be no result.” —Mahatma Gandhi

3.5

This is far from being the worst book I've ever read, but Mr. Ronson's artistic genius clearly is not crafting great literature. The high points of this book are the moments when he is able to convey the joy he feels for his true love: using music to “crack the room open - to give people a reason to be alive.” I wish there had been more of those moments and fewer instances of name-dropping that read like a guest list of people partying at places that were once the place to be.

Ryan Holiday recommendation.