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3.65 AVERAGE
3.65 AVERAGE
This was sheer pleasure to read. I had to slow my pace so as to not devour the richness too quickly. It wouldn’t make me ill; it’s not that kind of book, but it would be a shame to not savor every phrase. I will dip into this pleasure again and again.
BX Link: https://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/17078123
Genre: Philosophy
Where: N/A
When: N/A
Thoughts/Reflections: A fascinating reflection on silence… what it is, what it isn’t, and how its presence and its absence affects our lives – our happiness, even our sanity. It wanders a bit…kind of like silent moments do. It was a quick read for me, and one I’ll probably return to.
My favorite quotes:
“Whenever I am unable to walk, climb or sail away from the world, I have learned to shut it out.”
“A lot of things in daily life boil down to wonder. It is one of the purest forms of joy that I can imagine.”
“Silence in itself is rich. It is exclusive and luxurious. A key to unlock new ways of thinking.”
“You cannot wait for it to get quiet. Not in New York, nor anywhere else. You must create your own silence.”
“Silence is about rediscovering, through pausing, the things that bring us joy.”
Genre: Philosophy
Where: N/A
When: N/A
Thoughts/Reflections: A fascinating reflection on silence… what it is, what it isn’t, and how its presence and its absence affects our lives – our happiness, even our sanity. It wanders a bit…kind of like silent moments do. It was a quick read for me, and one I’ll probably return to.
My favorite quotes:
“Whenever I am unable to walk, climb or sail away from the world, I have learned to shut it out.”
“A lot of things in daily life boil down to wonder. It is one of the purest forms of joy that I can imagine.”
“Silence in itself is rich. It is exclusive and luxurious. A key to unlock new ways of thinking.”
“You cannot wait for it to get quiet. Not in New York, nor anywhere else. You must create your own silence.”
“Silence is about rediscovering, through pausing, the things that bring us joy.”
The essence of the book was good and the images were beautiful, but this book is more a celebration of the power of silence than anything else. I have to say, I was completely drawn to the cover and could definitely suggest this book to some people, but I didn't find anything earth shattering or new for me in it.
As a person who craves silence sometimes, this was interesting enough. Just like his book Walking, it was an easy read, but very rambling and scattered in it's organization. While reading you kind of have to just stick with it until he says something that speaks to you.
A deeply personal reflection on how much our minds need silence, and how silence is so much more than just the absence of noise. There’s silence around oneself and silence within oneself and Kagge spends the book reflecting on them both. Kagge points out the ways in which our minds need silence within and can find it in a world that provides no silence around.
A good reminder that we need silence in our lives. A little pretentious.
Best for: Those looking for a quick but insightful read about all the noise in our lives.
In a nutshell: Explorer and writer Erling Kagge offers his poetic thoughts on the importance of silence in our lives.
Worth quoting:
“There are so many noises that we barely hear them all.”
“Silence in itself is rich. It is exclusive and luxurious.”
“Noise in the form of anticipating a screen or keyboard is addictive, and that is why we need silence.”
“[Silence] is about getting inside what you are doing. Experiencing rather than over-thinking. Allowing each moment to be big enough. Not living through other people and other things.”
Why I chose it: As evidenced by my last review, I’m trying to find more intentionality and authenticity in my life. This book seemed like a good addition to my list of books to help me in that goal.
Review:
What a lovely book. It starts with a quick introduction, then jumps into 33 short chapters that are meditations on the ideas of noise and of silence. Mr. Kagge — who has been to the North and South poles as well as the top of Mt. Everest — knows a thing or two about silence. He went 50 days without speaking when making his way across Antarctica.
But this book isn’t about figuring out a way to get to a snow-covered, empty continent. It’s more about looking at why silence matters, and what it means to find an escape from the din of our lives. As a writer, I especially appreciated the chapters that spoke to the idea that some experiences don’t translate well into words; we just need to be in them. The example he uses is examining the moss on a rock; I would say that I’ve experienced when traveling and I find myself in parts of the world that have architecture from many hundreds of years ago. Being in the moment, instead of talking or even writing about it, helps me connect to it more than if I tried to find the words.
I read a book many years ago called “Einstein’s Dreams,” and this reminds me a bit of that. I doubt they are actually similar, but the feeling I got from it is comparable. I felt calm, and invested in the writing. I felt peaceful but also motivated.
This book has been translated into 33 languages, and I can see why. I think the message translates well.
In a nutshell: Explorer and writer Erling Kagge offers his poetic thoughts on the importance of silence in our lives.
Worth quoting:
“There are so many noises that we barely hear them all.”
“Silence in itself is rich. It is exclusive and luxurious.”
“Noise in the form of anticipating a screen or keyboard is addictive, and that is why we need silence.”
“[Silence] is about getting inside what you are doing. Experiencing rather than over-thinking. Allowing each moment to be big enough. Not living through other people and other things.”
Why I chose it: As evidenced by my last review, I’m trying to find more intentionality and authenticity in my life. This book seemed like a good addition to my list of books to help me in that goal.
Review:
What a lovely book. It starts with a quick introduction, then jumps into 33 short chapters that are meditations on the ideas of noise and of silence. Mr. Kagge — who has been to the North and South poles as well as the top of Mt. Everest — knows a thing or two about silence. He went 50 days without speaking when making his way across Antarctica.
But this book isn’t about figuring out a way to get to a snow-covered, empty continent. It’s more about looking at why silence matters, and what it means to find an escape from the din of our lives. As a writer, I especially appreciated the chapters that spoke to the idea that some experiences don’t translate well into words; we just need to be in them. The example he uses is examining the moss on a rock; I would say that I’ve experienced when traveling and I find myself in parts of the world that have architecture from many hundreds of years ago. Being in the moment, instead of talking or even writing about it, helps me connect to it more than if I tried to find the words.
I read a book many years ago called “Einstein’s Dreams,” and this reminds me a bit of that. I doubt they are actually similar, but the feeling I got from it is comparable. I felt calm, and invested in the writing. I felt peaceful but also motivated.
This book has been translated into 33 languages, and I can see why. I think the message translates well.
This is the kind of book that asks to be digested slowly--I took a month to read it, and it's not at all very long. Kagge reminded me how important it is to unplug and just listen to the world around me. If you've ever felt a bit lost or unmoored in our world, this book can be an anchor.
Very short yet interesting work on the philosophy of fSilence