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3.53 AVERAGE
3.53 AVERAGE
----UPDATE:
Well, I listened to it again, and I liked/appreciated it even more the second time, hence 5 stars. It would be a great book for high school seniors. He is asking the big questions: What is the point to life? How do we get there? What keeps us from it? His advice for considering a job/vocation, a spouse, and a faith is all fantastic. I wish I could have understood a quarter of the advice/insights when I was first making those big decisions. And, the metaphor of two mountains in life is profound. It's referenced and alluded to all over, but I don't feel like many young people hear it. At least I never did.
A few more critiques/frustrations: I did think his section on commitment to community is lacking, especially compared to his faith exploration in the previous section. And despite his insight into marriage, it feels like he exalts the falling-in-love experience on a precarious pedestal. How often do people really experience what he describes?
That said, a wonderful second read, one I will recommend to others.
----FIRST REVIEW:
If you were to think of life as a metaphor, climbing two mountains is pretty good. The first, according to Brooks, is that of the individual striving of self - building the necessary ego - of success and self-discovery. Our culture (in the West and particularly the US), exalts and honors those on this first mountain - movie stars, the rich, the successful. Money often follow first mountain accomplishments. But one's life, if lived well, must summit the second mountain of giving yourself away in service to others. The ego must dissolve as we move from focus on self to focus on others. The book continues to say that this second mountain experience is found not through self-discovery but making commitments: to vocation, spouse, a faith/philosophy of life, and community/neighborhood. In the final chapter - the chapter I found most compelling - is a manifesto: The Relationalist Manifesto, offered as an antidote to today's cancer - hyper-individualism. And you can read it on his website here.
This is the type of book I really appreciate, partly because of its sheer audacity and breath of vision, and that's part of the reason I didn't like it. He is asking great questions. How do we think of and live out the whole of life? What malady most ails our society? What is life's ultimate meaning? And most of all - I think the question that under-girds the entire book - How do we live well? Some would argue that the whole premise is a futile attempt, but I disagree. These are the hard, impossible-to-answer-but-so-important-we-try questions. Brooks soars at the 35,000 ft perspective on life and then zeros in on the four commitments to vocation, marriage, faith, and community, offering practical suggestion for each, to then zooms out again for his concluding manifesto.
Confession: I liked the book before reading it because the overall premise was confirmation bias… There is a time for exploration and discovery, but as we mature we (should) move toward commitment and depth, rather than breadth. Second, it comes as no surprise that Brooks is an excellent writer - clear, eloquent, and poetic at times. He provides ample wisdom to wrestle with and savor.
However, my overall gripe with the book was I felt its overall structure was choppy. The transition from the second mountain to the 4 commitments didn’t flow evenly. It felt almost like 2 books loosely connected, or maybe even 1 book with 4 longer essays. That being said, I hope to some day read it a second time.
Well, I listened to it again, and I liked/appreciated it even more the second time, hence 5 stars. It would be a great book for high school seniors. He is asking the big questions: What is the point to life? How do we get there? What keeps us from it? His advice for considering a job/vocation, a spouse, and a faith is all fantastic. I wish I could have understood a quarter of the advice/insights when I was first making those big decisions. And, the metaphor of two mountains in life is profound. It's referenced and alluded to all over, but I don't feel like many young people hear it. At least I never did.
A few more critiques/frustrations: I did think his section on commitment to community is lacking, especially compared to his faith exploration in the previous section. And despite his insight into marriage, it feels like he exalts the falling-in-love experience on a precarious pedestal. How often do people really experience what he describes?
That said, a wonderful second read, one I will recommend to others.
----FIRST REVIEW:
If you were to think of life as a metaphor, climbing two mountains is pretty good. The first, according to Brooks, is that of the individual striving of self - building the necessary ego - of success and self-discovery. Our culture (in the West and particularly the US), exalts and honors those on this first mountain - movie stars, the rich, the successful. Money often follow first mountain accomplishments. But one's life, if lived well, must summit the second mountain of giving yourself away in service to others. The ego must dissolve as we move from focus on self to focus on others. The book continues to say that this second mountain experience is found not through self-discovery but making commitments: to vocation, spouse, a faith/philosophy of life, and community/neighborhood. In the final chapter - the chapter I found most compelling - is a manifesto: The Relationalist Manifesto, offered as an antidote to today's cancer - hyper-individualism. And you can read it on his website here.
This is the type of book I really appreciate, partly because of its sheer audacity and breath of vision, and that's part of the reason I didn't like it. He is asking great questions. How do we think of and live out the whole of life? What malady most ails our society? What is life's ultimate meaning? And most of all - I think the question that under-girds the entire book - How do we live well? Some would argue that the whole premise is a futile attempt, but I disagree. These are the hard, impossible-to-answer-but-so-important-we-try questions. Brooks soars at the 35,000 ft perspective on life and then zeros in on the four commitments to vocation, marriage, faith, and community, offering practical suggestion for each, to then zooms out again for his concluding manifesto.
Confession: I liked the book before reading it because the overall premise was confirmation bias… There is a time for exploration and discovery, but as we mature we (should) move toward commitment and depth, rather than breadth. Second, it comes as no surprise that Brooks is an excellent writer - clear, eloquent, and poetic at times. He provides ample wisdom to wrestle with and savor.
However, my overall gripe with the book was I felt its overall structure was choppy. The transition from the second mountain to the 4 commitments didn’t flow evenly. It felt almost like 2 books loosely connected, or maybe even 1 book with 4 longer essays. That being said, I hope to some day read it a second time.
Easily one of the very best books I’ve read this year. Sometimes books have a habit of finding you exactly when you need them and that was certainly the case here. I found Brooks by turns observant, challenging, pointed, and winsome- a true friend for the journey. I can see how his extensive quoting of others will annoy some people- it didn’t bother me at all. I not only respected him more for the vast breadth and depth of his reading and thinking, but also felt I was getting a strong “survey” of significant thinking on the topics he was writing about. His telling of his conversion experience (he now identifies as a “wandering Jew and very confused Christian”) was one of the most compelling I’ve read. It really did justice to the more protracted experiences some have that are deeply intellectual and advance in a messy, complex fashion that can never be neatly tied with a bow. His story is uniquely his own but it did bring to mind for me the experiences of C.S. Lewis and Eric Metaxas.
An okay start, but quickly delves into tribal and sentimental pseudo-religious trite. If you're not into Spiritually or self-help books, this one is a strong pass.
I enjoyed the first third of the book and the last chapter. The middle left me wondering why his discovery of religion has anything to do with overcoming tribalism and battling toxic individualism as that is the perfect breading ground for such things. He had good points on forming communities and helping each other, then contradicted himself in how religion is a crucial part of that, after saying religion isn't the same as personal belief - all in an effort to seem relatable? To me it came across as preachy and heavy-handed.
There is a lot of great content in the book, and a lot to be learned, but you will need to be patient while he works through some stuff.
There is a lot of great content in the book, and a lot to be learned, but you will need to be patient while he works through some stuff.
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
As someone who got thrown into a second career search late in life, this book was especially helpful and meaningful to me.
informative
slow-paced
This book changed my world with regards to life, dedication, goals, and love.
4.2/5
4.2/5
challenging
medium-paced
What will your second mountain be?
Summary: A treatise of how everyone in life faces two mountains: the first kills the ego, and, in order to live a moral life, we must choose a second mountain that will give us a cause to fight for that and set us on the path to pursue a worthwhile and transcendent life.
My Thoughts: I had read Brooks' previous book, [b:The Road to Character|22551809|The Road to Character|David Brooks|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1422216361l/22551809._SY75_.jpg|42009504], and found it to be enormously impactful in my life and one of the best books I had read that year. What immediately stood out in reading this book is how much the author's worldview changed in the time between writing these two books. Without a doubt, there were moments in this book where I rolled my eyes or cringed. The author would get overly sentimental, use weak evidence for his arguments, or speak in flowery and head-in-the-clouds language. But besides those moments, this book was filled with insightful, well-supported, profound perspectives on how to approach life. The author's theories vibed with my own life experiences, and I found myself compelled by the theories he was proposing. I especially recommend this book to young people, recent college graduates, and those between jobs. I would give the first 1/3 of the book 5 stars and the final 2/3 only 2 stars. This is because the first 1/3 talked about vocation, which is more applicable to me at this point in my life, while the last 2/3 talked about marriage, religion, and community, which are not priorities in my life at this time. Depending on what is important to you right now, there are portions of this book that will be more impactful than others. Nonetheless, this is a book that will leave you with many great quotes.
What I Learned From It: This book left me asking important questions about my own life: When have I felt so connected to a cause that I forgot about my own ambitions? What commitment do I want to devote my life to? What will my second mountain be?
Three Favorite Quotes:
1. "If the first mountain is about acquisition, the second mountain is about contribution."
2. “He realized that the career questions - What do I want from life? What can I do to make myself happy? - are not the proper questions. The real question is, What is life asking of me?”
3. “The way to acquire a good taste in anything, from pictures to architecture, from literature to character, from wine to cigars, is always the same - be familiar with the best specimens of each.”
Summary: A treatise of how everyone in life faces two mountains: the first kills the ego, and, in order to live a moral life, we must choose a second mountain that will give us a cause to fight for that and set us on the path to pursue a worthwhile and transcendent life.
My Thoughts: I had read Brooks' previous book, [b:The Road to Character|22551809|The Road to Character|David Brooks|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1422216361l/22551809._SY75_.jpg|42009504], and found it to be enormously impactful in my life and one of the best books I had read that year. What immediately stood out in reading this book is how much the author's worldview changed in the time between writing these two books. Without a doubt, there were moments in this book where I rolled my eyes or cringed. The author would get overly sentimental, use weak evidence for his arguments, or speak in flowery and head-in-the-clouds language. But besides those moments, this book was filled with insightful, well-supported, profound perspectives on how to approach life. The author's theories vibed with my own life experiences, and I found myself compelled by the theories he was proposing. I especially recommend this book to young people, recent college graduates, and those between jobs. I would give the first 1/3 of the book 5 stars and the final 2/3 only 2 stars. This is because the first 1/3 talked about vocation, which is more applicable to me at this point in my life, while the last 2/3 talked about marriage, religion, and community, which are not priorities in my life at this time. Depending on what is important to you right now, there are portions of this book that will be more impactful than others. Nonetheless, this is a book that will leave you with many great quotes.
What I Learned From It: This book left me asking important questions about my own life: When have I felt so connected to a cause that I forgot about my own ambitions? What commitment do I want to devote my life to? What will my second mountain be?
Three Favorite Quotes:
1. "If the first mountain is about acquisition, the second mountain is about contribution."
2. “He realized that the career questions - What do I want from life? What can I do to make myself happy? - are not the proper questions. The real question is, What is life asking of me?”
3. “The way to acquire a good taste in anything, from pictures to architecture, from literature to character, from wine to cigars, is always the same - be familiar with the best specimens of each.”