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3.06 AVERAGE
3.06 AVERAGE
Very interesting book - a man who is a well-known motivational speaker goes into seclusion after suffering the loss of his wife; this book takes the reader on an adventure of past reflection and current life situation prompting questions of beliefs in miracles and universal attractions of good and desires.
Not many books make me cry, this one did. Great book, well written. I love how intertwines 2 different periods of time.
Copy provided by NetGallery.com in exchange for a review
Dissapointment...I'm sorry but to me this was. I didn't get what the hype was about. I'm not into self-help books.
Eric Newborn has turned around millions of lives with his bestselling self-help books. That is until he loses his wife to cancer and he abruptly stops believing in his own advice. Eric disavows his past teachings and lives as a recluse in Martha’s Vineyard. But when a determined fan tracks him down, he is forced to relive his past memories and contemplate his next book, The Book of Why.
Nicholas Montemarano’s novel, The Book of Why, actually begins as a self-help book.
Unfortunately, The Book of Why fails to advance beyond that point. The primary story arch simply ends in the second half of the book amid colliding memories and never gets picked back up. What began as the documentation of a man’s journey – either towards redemption or destruction – simply ends up going no place. In all honesty, there is no discernible plotline to this story. While the premise held real promise, the book devolves into scattered thoughts and ideas with no real connection and no destination.
The Book of Why may have some emotion and artistic depth, but it fails to deliver on its early promise of a story. What we get instead feels unfinished and unedited.
Dissapointment...I'm sorry but to me this was. I didn't get what the hype was about. I'm not into self-help books.
Eric Newborn has turned around millions of lives with his bestselling self-help books. That is until he loses his wife to cancer and he abruptly stops believing in his own advice. Eric disavows his past teachings and lives as a recluse in Martha’s Vineyard. But when a determined fan tracks him down, he is forced to relive his past memories and contemplate his next book, The Book of Why.
Nicholas Montemarano’s novel, The Book of Why, actually begins as a self-help book.
Unfortunately, The Book of Why fails to advance beyond that point. The primary story arch simply ends in the second half of the book amid colliding memories and never gets picked back up. What began as the documentation of a man’s journey – either towards redemption or destruction – simply ends up going no place. In all honesty, there is no discernible plotline to this story. While the premise held real promise, the book devolves into scattered thoughts and ideas with no real connection and no destination.
The Book of Why may have some emotion and artistic depth, but it fails to deliver on its early promise of a story. What we get instead feels unfinished and unedited.
The title caught my eye.
Titles often speak to me.
It was interesting but I got stuck or distracted half way through and it took me ages to finish.
It was more sad than happy.
Talked about what was and what could be...because sometimes we have difficulties accepting what is.
About accepting or not accepting.
Believing or not.
Giving up.
Mmm...
Titles often speak to me.
It was interesting but I got stuck or distracted half way through and it took me ages to finish.
It was more sad than happy.
Talked about what was and what could be...because sometimes we have difficulties accepting what is.
About accepting or not accepting.
Believing or not.
Giving up.
Mmm...
I was looking forward to this book, but it just seemed to drag on a bit and took me a while to get into, in fact unusual for me, I didn't even finish it.
It was like a self help book mixed with a story. Perhaps I'll try it again sometime. It really didn't capture my interest though.
It was like a self help book mixed with a story. Perhaps I'll try it again sometime. It really didn't capture my interest though.
I have to admit, I delayed picking up this book for as long as possible… Reason you ask? Well, I am not a big fan of self-help books. They are very presumptuous if you ask me. A person may be an expert on handling things and may have knowledge of how people act and react, but it is a big mistake to categorize people and write a book about which category will react how and what they should do. It undermines our individuality. Besides, I hate the idea that a person who has never met me in life – tell me how I will react and what I should do. Why can’t I learn it for myself?
Okay, so now that my rant is over, let me come to the storyline and try and salvage this review. Our protagonist is a very successful writer – of self help books. He is a best-selling author and people flock to his speeches. But when he loses his wife, he is broken. For all the worth his books and knowledge were, when time comes he fails to help himself! He becomes a recluse and hides down in a vineyard until a fan tracks him down and changes his life forever.
This was a difficult book to get into for me because various chapters started with the protagonists speeches and quotes from his best-selling days. But once I made peace with the fact, this book was highly enjoyable. Eric Newborn, our protagonist, had an interesting life to say. His life sectioned into three parts – his early youth till he gets married, his life with his wife and his present without her. While the and forth continuously, I think revealing one bit at a time and then connecting the dots to make a full picture of his life was a brilliant way to tell this story. I soon became a part of Eric, Ralph and Cary’s story. The author’s eye for detail helped create a more vivid picture of the setting.
Overall, I think this book is good for a one time read that will force you to ask yourself a few important questions. Whether it affects you enough to bring a change is up to you. I enjoyed reading it.
Okay, so now that my rant is over, let me come to the storyline and try and salvage this review. Our protagonist is a very successful writer – of self help books. He is a best-selling author and people flock to his speeches. But when he loses his wife, he is broken. For all the worth his books and knowledge were, when time comes he fails to help himself! He becomes a recluse and hides down in a vineyard until a fan tracks him down and changes his life forever.
This was a difficult book to get into for me because various chapters started with the protagonists speeches and quotes from his best-selling days. But once I made peace with the fact, this book was highly enjoyable. Eric Newborn, our protagonist, had an interesting life to say. His life sectioned into three parts – his early youth till he gets married, his life with his wife and his present without her. While the and forth continuously, I think revealing one bit at a time and then connecting the dots to make a full picture of his life was a brilliant way to tell this story. I soon became a part of Eric, Ralph and Cary’s story. The author’s eye for detail helped create a more vivid picture of the setting.
Overall, I think this book is good for a one time read that will force you to ask yourself a few important questions. Whether it affects you enough to bring a change is up to you. I enjoyed reading it.
It was an easy read and I got caught up in the story quickly. It's not what I was expecting, but I enjoyed the story although it did make me tear up a couple of times.
The title caught my eye.
Titles often speak to me.
It was interesting but I got stuck or distracted half way through and it took me ages to finish.
It was more sad than happy.
Talked about what was and what could be...because sometimes we have difficulties accepting what is.
About accepting or not accepting.
Believing or not.
Giving up.
Mmm...
Titles often speak to me.
It was interesting but I got stuck or distracted half way through and it took me ages to finish.
It was more sad than happy.
Talked about what was and what could be...because sometimes we have difficulties accepting what is.
About accepting or not accepting.
Believing or not.
Giving up.
Mmm...
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I thought the premise of the book had a lot of potential, and I really enjoyed the first half. Some parts had me close to crying. Writing style is nice w good but not excessive descriptions. The time jumps and very short chapters, almost like little anecdotes about the mc’s life, make for a pretty quick read. It also has the effect that the reader is trying to unite these disparate events into some semblance of meaning — much like what the mc tries to do in his own life.
Second half fell flat for me. The “mysteries” are perfunctorily resolved but not fleshed out in any way. Perhaps that was intentional, for the reader to have to draw their own meaning from it. But it felt unfinished.
Second half fell flat for me. The “mysteries” are perfunctorily resolved but not fleshed out in any way. Perhaps that was intentional, for the reader to have to draw their own meaning from it. But it felt unfinished.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Animal death, Cancer, Death, Infertility, Car accident
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated