So I wrote this long comment and it disappeared. Main points: heck yes to girlie survival; trees and fungi made me think of Speaker for the Dead; in Russian, altruism means sacrificing for the good of others and I absolutely assumed that’s what it meant in English, too; I am now reading The Gene by Mukherjee and I think you may like it.
Ugh! What a bummer! I’m so sorry. I haven’t read Speaker for the Dead, but maybe I should check it out. Altruism definitely means the same as it does in Russian, but some definitions in English don’t specify self-sacrifice. Like this one: the belief in or practice of disinterested and selfless concern for the well-being of others.
The Gene sounds super interesting! I’m reading, “Righteous Ming,” by Johnathan Haidt. Reeeeeally interesting stuff about how we prioritize moral behavior and how societies conflicts are often a result of differences in these priorities.
Speaker is a sequel to Ender’s Game but can be read as a stand-alone. It’s been years and years since I read it but I really liked it. Righteous Mind sounds great, I’ll have to add it to my list.
So I wrote this long comment and it disappeared. Main points: heck yes to girlie survival; trees and fungi made me think of Speaker for the Dead; in Russian, altruism means sacrificing for the good of others and I absolutely assumed that’s what it meant in English, too; I am now reading The Gene by Mukherjee and I think you may like it.
Ugh! What a bummer! I’m so sorry. I haven’t read Speaker for the Dead, but maybe I should check it out. Altruism definitely means the same as it does in Russian, but some definitions in English don’t specify self-sacrifice. Like this one: the belief in or practice of disinterested and selfless concern for the well-being of others.
The Gene sounds super interesting! I’m reading, “Righteous Ming,” by Johnathan Haidt. Reeeeeally interesting stuff about how we prioritize moral behavior and how societies conflicts are often a result of differences in these priorities.
Speaker is a sequel to Ender’s Game but can be read as a stand-alone. It’s been years and years since I read it but I really liked it. Righteous Mind sounds great, I’ll have to add it to my list.
Oops. Accidentally posted too soon. I think you’d enjoy this book too.