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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
Forgettable pseudophilosophical navel-gazing memoir of an accomplished writer. I picked it up in the hopes of gazing insights and learning about other people's youth, at the time when as a 18, coming on 19-year old, I moved to another country and I felt a little bit unsure of my future. There were no lessons to take away, unfortunately.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I must be getting more tolerant of annoying western "Buddhists" because I found myself really enjoying getting carried along by this as he sort of skated from one thing to another. Of course you shouldn't think about it too hard: his attitude to women, or the fact that he can only maintain his free, unattached lifestyle thanks to the labour of people who are willing to put in a day's work packing pork and beans, making berets, manufacturing cigarettes and so on - so as a prescription for life, it's not really something everyone can follow, but sure, if you forget that and just live in the moment with him as he climbs the mountain, feeling awe of the world around him, it's great. I actually listened to the audio version read by Ethan Hawke, and it was a beautiful day, wandering about Wimbledon Common, and that probably helped me vibe with it.
adventurous
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
More enjoyable than on the road :). More white guys yapping misguidedly about eastern culture :(
nothing close to big sur and probably a lot like on the road which I remembered liking as a teen but likely wouldn't like anymore. I'm not a fan of this one but this is still early in his career as he hones his craft at showing how to see and to live while finding an inner peace, and you can't give two stars to that, my friend
hopeful
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This book kind of makes me sad. I love the description of USA at the time, and his careless lifestyle, and I can understand why it started the "rucksack revolution". But I get the feeling that Ray / Jack is naive in his view of buddhism even though he had a lot of practical experience through meditation as well as theoretical studies. Especially naive is how he sees little difference between buddhism and christianity. There are a couple of stories in the book that really touch me though, and a sentence I will keep close as a quote: "Though the flesh be bugged, the circumstances of existence are still pretty glorious." (https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/168911-though-the-flesh-be-bugged-the-circumstances-of-existence-are)