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1.03k reviews for:
The Art of Asking; or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Let People Help
Amanda Palmer
4.1 AVERAGE
1.03k reviews for:
The Art of Asking; or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Let People Help
Amanda Palmer
4.1 AVERAGE
Part memoir, part self help, part marketing manifesto, this is a compelling read...especially fellow feminists who view asking for assistance as a sign of weakness!
This was a tough one for me (obviously, as it took me three months to finish it). I love the persona of Amanda Palmer online because she is this badass, in-your-face, enlightened force who spews love and art to everyone who will listen to her or even just look her way. But I struggled between loving this book and not having it grab my attention. Yes, she is just starting to get into published writing, but it wasn't bad by any means. You can feel her timidness at times and her fierceness at other points.
I think my biggest struggle with this was the inconsistency - the inconsistency of her writing, the inconsistency of where she was taking us, and the inconsistency of how I felt when I was reading it. Most of the time, I want to read a book as quickly as possible - either because I love it and can't get enough or because it's so-so/is terrible and I want to get it over with. I almost had to force myself to finish this because after 3/4 of the way through. Not for lack of time, but because I didn't know how much more of it I could read. But once I got started back into it, I flew through it and finished it in one night and enjoyed what I read.
I will say that I think she is incredibly stimulating and she made me think about a lot of what she wrote about. I recommended it to quite a few people to read because I did enjoy it. But I didn't love it. There were parts that I absolutely loved, but parts that I wished she had skipped over or shortened because a lot of it was repetitive or felt like it was out of place.
I'd give it 3.5/5 stars and a big recommendation to people like me who find it hard to ask for help.
I think my biggest struggle with this was the inconsistency - the inconsistency of her writing, the inconsistency of where she was taking us, and the inconsistency of how I felt when I was reading it. Most of the time, I want to read a book as quickly as possible - either because I love it and can't get enough or because it's so-so/is terrible and I want to get it over with. I almost had to force myself to finish this because after 3/4 of the way through. Not for lack of time, but because I didn't know how much more of it I could read. But once I got started back into it, I flew through it and finished it in one night and enjoyed what I read.
I will say that I think she is incredibly stimulating and she made me think about a lot of what she wrote about. I recommended it to quite a few people to read because I did enjoy it. But I didn't love it. There were parts that I absolutely loved, but parts that I wished she had skipped over or shortened because a lot of it was repetitive or felt like it was out of place.
I'd give it 3.5/5 stars and a big recommendation to people like me who find it hard to ask for help.
This book re-evaluates the music business and how Amanda Palmer has done it and continues to do it. There are artists who are afraid to say why they make their art. It would mean they would have to do some deep thinking about themselves which Amanda has done for herself. Also, what she proposes "let the people pay for art" is a new concept for most. People don't like change. New things scare them. Some new ideas take centuries to get momentum (Ptolemy theory that sun is the center of our universe). Other artists cheer on Amanda for saying what they were afraid to or didn't know how to go about letting people help pay for art they want. Like Anthony says on page 180, you cannot please everyone. Just do your thing and hope for the best.
What Amanda Palmer says makes you really think. People in her life have given her great advice during her journey. This advice is passed onto the reader. This book is not only for the artist, it's for anyone who needed help and felt guilty asking for help with it. Amanda assures you that it's okay. The genre this book would fall into is unknown just like the author's music with the Dresden Dolls, on her own label, and with Grand Theft Orchestra. It's self-help/biography/Good advice all rolled into one book. It's definitely worth a read.
What Amanda Palmer says makes you really think. People in her life have given her great advice during her journey. This advice is passed onto the reader. This book is not only for the artist, it's for anyone who needed help and felt guilty asking for help with it. Amanda assures you that it's okay. The genre this book would fall into is unknown just like the author's music with the Dresden Dolls, on her own label, and with Grand Theft Orchestra. It's self-help/biography/Good advice all rolled into one book. It's definitely worth a read.
A fascinating look through the eyes of a woman who really wants to connect with others. I shed a few tears. It's basically a memoir of a time in her life where she was generally misunderstood by the general public (and critics of the music world) but had her fans stick by her side.
Este libro definitivamente no es lo mejor que he leído en mi vida; es la gran historia de alguien real, que existe, que piensa y siente, muchísimo, ¿cómo no darle las cinco estrellas al valor que eso tiene en sí mismo? uno no va calificando las historias que otros deciden contarte, uno las escucha (o lee) y decide si aprender o no de ellas. Me vino como anillo al dedo conocer a Amanda Palmer y gracias biblioteca pública digital por tenerlo, o no hubiese sabido cómo conseguirlo.
Conocí a Amanda no hace tanto tiempo como me gustaría, pero quizá no necesitaba de su música como la necesito ahora y está bien, es genial recibir las cosas en los momentos precisos de la vida.
Va reseña si o si en el blog y me iré en contra de las malas críticas que existen porque me siento protectora del mundo luego de leer esto.
Conocí a Amanda no hace tanto tiempo como me gustaría, pero quizá no necesitaba de su música como la necesito ahora y está bien, es genial recibir las cosas en los momentos precisos de la vida.
Va reseña si o si en el blog y me iré en contra de las malas críticas que existen porque me siento protectora del mundo luego de leer esto.
I listened to this on audio and think that's probably the way to go. The music included in the recording really does seem essential to getting the full experience of what's she's writing about. She's also a great narrator.
I am so glad that I read this. I knew nothing of Amanda Palmer (except that she is married to Neil Gaiman) and I don’t even know how I found this book. And I got it only because it was the only thing available through the library’s ebrary. And I have to say, that, we have nothing and everything in common. Women don’t know how to ask for what they want. And here? She talks about how to ask. She built community through her music, in a unique and incredible way and around the world there are people with nothing in common, except that they found her and for some reason became a part of her. And she did it by asking.
And she makes a plea. For “artists, creators, scientists, non-profit runners, librarians,strange-thinkers, starter-uppers, and inventors, to all people everywhere, who are afraid to take help in whatever form it is appearing:
Please take the donuts.”
Read it. You'll get why she says that.
And she makes a plea. For “artists, creators, scientists, non-profit runners, librarians,strange-thinkers, starter-uppers, and inventors, to all people everywhere, who are afraid to take help in whatever form it is appearing:
Please take the donuts.”
Read it. You'll get why she says that.
AFP, what can I say? Thank you sharing your life with us on the low blender setting. For someone who typically reads closer to the Neil Gaiman high blender setting, I couldn’t put this book down. Reading women like you sharing stories like this—it makes a difference.
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective