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4.26 AVERAGE
4.26 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Viktor Frankl’s classic is probably one of the most important books ever written due to his account of what he and other Holocaust victims endured at the hands of the Nazis. I found the first two-thirds of the book as riveting of a read as any book I’ve ever read. The important take away is how Frankl witnessed how fellow prisoners that were able to find even the smallest scrap of meaning to their days generally (sadly not always) had higher rates of survival.
The last third or so is mostly devoted to Frankl’s own explanation of his own “logotherapy” and how he used it with his own clients. The therapy is essentially a wider application to what Frankl observed in captivity, where helping patients see the meaning in their suffering or in their work was usually effective therapeutically.
While this last section was not as interesting to read, the book remains essential to understanding humans’ inhumanity toward other humans, as well as how we can create meaning in even the worst circumstances.
The last third or so is mostly devoted to Frankl’s own explanation of his own “logotherapy” and how he used it with his own clients. The therapy is essentially a wider application to what Frankl observed in captivity, where helping patients see the meaning in their suffering or in their work was usually effective therapeutically.
While this last section was not as interesting to read, the book remains essential to understanding humans’ inhumanity toward other humans, as well as how we can create meaning in even the worst circumstances.
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Genocide, Torture, Violence, Antisemitism, Suicide attempt, War, Deportation
Moderate: Cannibalism
Safe to say this is something everyone should read once
This is good. Had some stuff I won’t forget. I’m not sure what else to say, but this did cause me to think.
challenging
dark
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
Pros: An utterly compelling book from start to finish. The crushing reality and immediacy of the narrative of Auschwitz and Dachau would be itself worth every word, but to it is added and from it extracted a host of insights and aphorisms useful to the modern reader in their daily life. This is a book which every human aught to read.
Cons: A little knowledge can be a dangerous thing, and in few fields is this more important to remember than psychology and theory of mind. The ideas and interventions in psychology have evolved since the publication of this book. That said, the ideas have aged rather well.
Verdict: strongly recommend.
Cons: A little knowledge can be a dangerous thing, and in few fields is this more important to remember than psychology and theory of mind. The ideas and interventions in psychology have evolved since the publication of this book. That said, the ideas have aged rather well.
Verdict: strongly recommend.
emotional
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced