You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.02 AVERAGE
4.02 AVERAGE
A witty and action packed book, full of classic British humour and wacky stories. I found it to be a very easy read and mostly very enjoyable- however, due to the sheer amount that Danny manages to get up to I did find it quite dense and could only read in small chunks otherwise it became quite a lot to follow. Repetitive at times but yet still caught myself laughing out loud on many occasions. It’s a really interesting read and I would highly recommend it to anyone.
What is it like to say yes to every question pointed in your general direction? This was recommended to me from a coworker, who promised funny. Sometimes when people recommend funny, you never know (unless that someone is Andrew, who gets funny). But this book had me laughing out loud many times. Though I think this dragged a little long about 3/4 of the way through, this was a great read. At times it reminded me of Round Ireland With a Fridge, and was surprisingly touching at the end. Near the end, the author is ruminating on whether or not people regret saying no or yes. “Take the stupidest thing you’ve ever done. At least it’s done. It’s over. It’s gone. We can all learn from our mistakes and heal and move on. But it’s harder to learn or heal or move on from something that hasn’t happened; something we don’t know and is therefore indefinable; something which could very easily have been the best thing in our lives, if only we’d taken the plunge, if only we’d held our breath and stood up and done it, if only we’d said yes.”
His writing style bugged me, and I really hated how he kept trying to argue that the Internet scams he responded to could be legit. A lot of this book made me cringe, but it could be good inspiration for saying yes to more things.
I found this deeply entertaining and very funny, and yet despite seeing how this paid off for Wallace I have no desire to try it for myself. Thing is, I realise it might actually benefit me in some ways. I say no a lot. That certainly has its effect. Frankly, though, the thought of being forced (for example) to socialise at every random invitation has absolutely no appeal. I'm exhausted thinking about it... I suspect that Wallace is less of an introvert than I am. But I think this book's strength is not that it's saying "You must go out and say Yes at every level, without discrimination", because even the author doesn't do that. It's more that you can get into a rut, and that being both open-minded and open to new experiences can be enriching. And that I've no argument with. To put it on a book level - because this is a book site, and most people here are obsessed with reading - it's what I've been trying to do more of lately. I tend to read speculative fiction - fantasy and sci-fi and horror, and I read a lot of it. A LOT. But if you only read in very limited genres, you miss a great deal of other interesting things. So, trawling through the Goodreads list function as I so often do for entertainment (hey, it's better than tv) I find myself clicking on random lists and tucking them away in my favourites folder... and then reading through them, no matter how bizarre they are. Because there's some fascinating and wonderful books out there, and some deeply terrible ones as well, granted, but I find myself making connections between them and thinking new things and that's immensely valuable if you like thinking in general, which I do.
So basically, this book is an argument for treating life like a Goodreads book list, and it's something worth doing. Some of the time, at least. I'm still not going to any fucking parties, though.
So basically, this book is an argument for treating life like a Goodreads book list, and it's something worth doing. Some of the time, at least. I'm still not going to any fucking parties, though.
There are not enough words to describe just how very much I enjoyed this book.
I traditionally never read humour books as I don't think that comedy translates very well to the written word most of the time. In this case, I stand corrected.
I laughed out loud so many times in this book and smiled even more. Yes Man has both entertained me and enlightened me. I am really tempted to give the Yes-ology a try...although perhaps not to the extent that Danny did.
The first chapter really resonated with me, in which Danny describes himself sitting in front of the tv and turning down invitations followed by him realising that he himself has turned his life into a blank canvas where nothing ever happens had me nodding in agreement and thinking to myself "what would happen in my life if I started saying yes more".
This book really makes you think and inspires you to try the simple life changing event of saying...yes.
Side note: SLIGHT SPOILER BEYOND THIS POINT
I was sitting in the doctor's waiting room and read the part where Danny started poking the monk that he was interviewing, I laughed so loud that I had people sitting around me nervously eyeing me and shifting away. haha
I traditionally never read humour books as I don't think that comedy translates very well to the written word most of the time. In this case, I stand corrected.
I laughed out loud so many times in this book and smiled even more. Yes Man has both entertained me and enlightened me. I am really tempted to give the Yes-ology a try...although perhaps not to the extent that Danny did.
The first chapter really resonated with me, in which Danny describes himself sitting in front of the tv and turning down invitations followed by him realising that he himself has turned his life into a blank canvas where nothing ever happens had me nodding in agreement and thinking to myself "what would happen in my life if I started saying yes more".
This book really makes you think and inspires you to try the simple life changing event of saying...yes.
Side note: SLIGHT SPOILER BEYOND THIS POINT
I was sitting in the doctor's waiting room and read the part where Danny started poking the monk that he was interviewing, I laughed so loud that I had people sitting around me nervously eyeing me and shifting away. haha
Really quite funny, but kind of falls apart at the end. Not as treacly as you might expect; kind of Douglas Adams-ish.
I might see the movie, although Jim Carrey will probably make it grossly sentimental.
I might see the movie, although Jim Carrey will probably make it grossly sentimental.
I read this book while travelling around Europe - a friend I was travelling with was actually reading it at the beginning of our trip, and after hearing her laughing and giggling (as well as feeling compelled to read out large chunks to me) as she read it made me desperate for her to finish so I could borrow it! It did not disappoint.
Very funny, but with a moral too, this is an amusing, easy read which also leaves you thinking about your own life and how you could learn from the book. This is something that I don't think many books could claim to do (or if anyone knows of any that can - please recommend them!)
The book is based on the author's real-life experience - though with some artistic licence. One of the things I liked best about the book (as well as the laugh-out-loud stories told in it) was that I could imagine being friends with Danny, sitting in his local pub, with him recounting his madcap tales. This made it extremely readable, and in my case, unputdownable.
And much as I found myself wishing that my friend would stop reading excerpts to me (as I didn't want the story ruined before I'd even opened the book) I did find myself doing the same while I was reading it, and even after.
Very funny, but with a moral too, this is an amusing, easy read which also leaves you thinking about your own life and how you could learn from the book. This is something that I don't think many books could claim to do (or if anyone knows of any that can - please recommend them!)
The book is based on the author's real-life experience - though with some artistic licence. One of the things I liked best about the book (as well as the laugh-out-loud stories told in it) was that I could imagine being friends with Danny, sitting in his local pub, with him recounting his madcap tales. This made it extremely readable, and in my case, unputdownable.
And much as I found myself wishing that my friend would stop reading excerpts to me (as I didn't want the story ruined before I'd even opened the book) I did find myself doing the same while I was reading it, and even after.
I really liked the concept of this but just felt like the story was a little rambly and the humour too enforced. At least it made me realise the value of using italics sparingly though.