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A review by sacrificebyfire
Life Is in the Transitions: Mastering Change at Any Age by Bruce Feiler
5.0
What feels like approximately 100 years ago, my therapist sent me a link to an article (she’s often sending me links; everyone deserves a person who sends them links). It was written by this guy, and I don’t ultimately remember what it said. What I noticed was the end where it says, “Bruce Feiler is the author of Life is in the Transitions...” And I knew I had to get my hands on that book. I am nothing if not a life of transitions!
Well, it finally came available from the library, and it did not disappoint. Feiler went across the country interviewing people about their major life changes (everything from death of infant child, surviving an IED, substance abuse disorder, pursuing an education, leaving an order, entering an order, leaving Wall Street and Silicone Valley, the loss of a parent, suicide, gender reassignment surgery, it runs the gamut), finding patterns in their coping, their skills, their habits, their self-expression, and their self-perception to come up with lessons for the rest of us on patterns that emerged. I’ll give you a clue: agency, belonging, and cause.
Alternating between these personal narratives and psychological theories, the author is here to proclaim the good news (at least good for the rest of us) that the linear life is dead. Instead, we are now in the midst of a life of disrupters (not all of them bad), on average one every 1-2 years. And for the really bad life quakes, we spend on average five years in transition to our new selves. This book is a guide on how to weather that event, whatever it may be, and come out on the other side thriving.
It was a great book. I found the interviewee stories very compelling and endearing. The schools of thought were well-explained and relevant. The lessons learned were accessible and relatable. In fact, I often felt like Feiler had been peeking in my window and reading my mind for the past couple of years. So even if it had no greater value that this, it comfortingly conveys that the anxious reader is not alone. We are a shared, creative humanity with many struggles and, more importantly, wins to share.
4.5 stars
(Crazy side note: I was on page 10 when I discovered my local friend’s boss was an interview subject for the book when I recognized his very distinctive bio - “a country music songwriter became a Lutheran pastor”)
Well, it finally came available from the library, and it did not disappoint. Feiler went across the country interviewing people about their major life changes (everything from death of infant child, surviving an IED, substance abuse disorder, pursuing an education, leaving an order, entering an order, leaving Wall Street and Silicone Valley, the loss of a parent, suicide, gender reassignment surgery, it runs the gamut), finding patterns in their coping, their skills, their habits, their self-expression, and their self-perception to come up with lessons for the rest of us on patterns that emerged. I’ll give you a clue: agency, belonging, and cause.
Alternating between these personal narratives and psychological theories, the author is here to proclaim the good news (at least good for the rest of us) that the linear life is dead. Instead, we are now in the midst of a life of disrupters (not all of them bad), on average one every 1-2 years. And for the really bad life quakes, we spend on average five years in transition to our new selves. This book is a guide on how to weather that event, whatever it may be, and come out on the other side thriving.
It was a great book. I found the interviewee stories very compelling and endearing. The schools of thought were well-explained and relevant. The lessons learned were accessible and relatable. In fact, I often felt like Feiler had been peeking in my window and reading my mind for the past couple of years. So even if it had no greater value that this, it comfortingly conveys that the anxious reader is not alone. We are a shared, creative humanity with many struggles and, more importantly, wins to share.
4.5 stars
(Crazy side note: I was on page 10 when I discovered my local friend’s boss was an interview subject for the book when I recognized his very distinctive bio - “a country music songwriter became a Lutheran pastor”)