Reviews

Stolen Focus: Why You Can't Pay Attention - and How to Think Deeply Again by Johann Hari, Johann Hari

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chudleycannons's review against another edition

informative reflective medium-paced

3.25

It has some interesting anecdotes about where our focus has gone, but approaches it in such an idealistic way that was somewhat off putting.

jocelynk's review against another edition

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3.0

I liked most of the book, or the message it’s trying to highlight. There’s a lot of things mentioned in this one book - and the mixing of facts, observations and opinions in this tone of voice makes it slightly sensationalist. I don’t doubt the issues - just the way it feels a bit unbalanced.

There’s a lot of personal bias in the writing that would make any objective reader raise eyebrows. The part on ADHD is dismissive and selective - this is a disservice to people who actually live with it (versus the author’s attention and focus problems that isn’t life wrecking).

I didn’t really like the author’s style, but it has made me think about the topic a lot deeper, and start to question what I’ve always been accepting as status quo.

notspacemanlee's review against another edition

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5.0

My focus was not stolen while reading this terrific book by Johann Hari.

I would rate this closer to 4.5 Stars because by the end he sort of shifts "focus" himself in
his conclusions and solutions. While well-intentioned, his "focus" at the end on climate change really
was not germane to the rest of the text.