b_michael's review
3.0
Dubious life principles extrapolated on the basis of questionable premises and validated even more questionably through an entertaining collection of amusing anecdotes about widely known historical figures.
opheliapo's review
4.0
I don’t usually care for ‘self help’ but this was the first time I’ve seen Machiavellianism presented without egotistical self-congratulation or a tagline of ‘this is evil!! only evil people would do this!!!’
I like that the book began by explaining to the reader that tools for understanding power can be used as much for good as for evil, and I like that the book ended by explaining to the reader that you shouldn’t blindly trust books. The middle bit contradicted itself a few times, but I think you’d have to be pretty dumb to take Greene’s suggestions as gospel.
I like that the book began by explaining to the reader that tools for understanding power can be used as much for good as for evil, and I like that the book ended by explaining to the reader that you shouldn’t blindly trust books. The middle bit contradicted itself a few times, but I think you’d have to be pretty dumb to take Greene’s suggestions as gospel.
adibtheman's review
3.0
I liked the book. It is a solid 3.5 stars, but I just can't get myself to award it 4-stars. I highly recommend this book and I do think everyone should read it but, I do have some issues with it.
There are not enough stories in the book to have 48 separate laws/chapters. After getting beyond the halfway point, it gets very repetitive as the same stories keep being recycled throughout. Though I understand the value of using a story more than once to make sure the reader gets the point, I do believe this was overdone in this case. I absolutely loved almost all the stories and appreciated Robert's interpretation of some of them that varied from mine, but it did take a toll after a while. Maybe reading this book over weeks instead of 3-4 days would have made the stories less repetitive.
With that said, I do think there are some valuable stories and lessons in this book that make reading it full of value. Thank you for writing your thoughts and experiences down and sharing them in the future of a book.
There are not enough stories in the book to have 48 separate laws/chapters. After getting beyond the halfway point, it gets very repetitive as the same stories keep being recycled throughout. Though I understand the value of using a story more than once to make sure the reader gets the point, I do believe this was overdone in this case. I absolutely loved almost all the stories and appreciated Robert's interpretation of some of them that varied from mine, but it did take a toll after a while. Maybe reading this book over weeks instead of 3-4 days would have made the stories less repetitive.
With that said, I do think there are some valuable stories and lessons in this book that make reading it full of value. Thank you for writing your thoughts and experiences down and sharing them in the future of a book.
mrericmendez's review
adventurous
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
5.0
Would recommend this book 6 out of 5 stars. Excellent philosophies to be aware of in the quest for power. Anyone who withholds this information from you means to have power over you. Excellent book filled with plenty of examples to solidify the concepts throughout the text. Superb & strong! Watch out world, you need to read this if you want to keep vigilant and retain control over oneself.
bookaddictrn's review against another edition
If you want to feel your soul shrivel up and die, this is the book for you. Makes me disheartened to know this is how some people truly want to live.