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greg_m's review
5.0
I picked this up from my local bookstore because 1) I have semi-fond memories of Infinite Jest and 2) the recommendation on the cover from the bookstore staff said it would be great for college graduates, whose ranks I am about to join in a month or so. I was not disappointed, to be sure.
Wallace strikes at what the idea of "teaching you how to think" really means. He posits that this does not mean how to over-intellectualize things or default to the "natural" state of thinking, which include several unconscious worships of money, power, intellect, etc.; he suggests that we consider how to think in ways that show us the obvious facts of life that are so ubiquitous that we fail to recognize it. That the people that we pass by every day and that we get so frustrated with are also people with thoughts and feelings that are as real to them as our own are to us. It's a really interesting way to look at compassion and empathy as a way to get through life happy and content.
Wallace strikes at what the idea of "teaching you how to think" really means. He posits that this does not mean how to over-intellectualize things or default to the "natural" state of thinking, which include several unconscious worships of money, power, intellect, etc.; he suggests that we consider how to think in ways that show us the obvious facts of life that are so ubiquitous that we fail to recognize it. That the people that we pass by every day and that we get so frustrated with are also people with thoughts and feelings that are as real to them as our own are to us. It's a really interesting way to look at compassion and empathy as a way to get through life happy and content.
sogy's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
jmariecapdem's review
4.0
Defintely a no-drama commencement speech rolled into a small book big of wisdom and compassion. I wish Mr. Wallace lived longer.
lauraborkpower's review against another edition
4.0
I could listen to him talk all day long. It was only 24 minutes long, but it was terrific, and tinged with a heavy and special kind of melancholy.
irina_maria's review against another edition
reflective
fast-paced
4.25
It's good in that it leaves you wondering about things ranging from the value of an education in the liberal arts to dealing with the dreadfulness of everyday life. Particularly poignant coming from Wallace. I was lucky enough to have heard variations of his message throughout my life from a handful of people and I find it all the more urgent. Very much worth discussing; there's a lot more that we share than that sets us apart.