Uncommon Measure

The rare case of a memoir that really works, interesting on its own without having to throw around famous people and world changing events. The author used the memoir to guide the reader through many topics: the immigrant experience; motherhood and male abortion; generational trauma; stereotypes surrounding East Asian children; musicology and competitiveness; and, of course, how all these intersect with the realm of classical music in particular.

Another merit, the book is frugal with the neuroscience and quantum physics references, citing just enough to breach the appropriate level of interdisciplinary thinking without deviating into pseudoscientific discourse. The synopsis raised a red flag putting those keywords so upfront, but I'm happy I gave it a chance. Personally, the most interesting bits were mostly subjective accounts on how music changes and is changed by the perception of time.