Reviews and Comments

To me, this book is so crucial to understanding the media, politics and culture. You have to climb the mountain of Stuart’s vocabulary if, like me, your own is of a more pedestrian variety. But his perspective on how things ‘are’ and how we got here, even when some of these essays are several decades old, is so insightful. I’m very glad that I read this. Thanks for the education.

Finally starting this book a year after I bought it!

A great introduction to the teachings of the Stoics, covering many aspects of day to day life. Most definitely encourages me to read their individual works, which I’ll do.

A terrific book, great advice on every page. Written in a very accessible style and easy to digest. I hope to have it within arms reach forever.

this seems like a path to contentment.

Just picked up a copy of this book, after having wanted it for years.

After the first chapter, it’s clear to me that this book is chock full of tips to elevate your mixes to rival any professional production. I’m already taking the author’s advice and running with it. A great pickup.

A nice respite from my usual non-fiction, this small collection had some good short stories and a few decent poems. The second issue of their journal that I've read. Pretty good.

In this age when so much is wrong with the world, Frédéric Gros seeks to convince us that by obeying others we disobey ourselves. Also, that our highest calling is to defend the community that we are a part of, our human community. By undertaking a habit of civil disobedience, we resist injustice. When we speak up for ourselves, we speak up for the whole of humanity.

He references people as diverse as Thoreau and Eichmann, Antigone and Kant, Foucault and la Boétie, finishing with Socrates and Plato. Describing the various ways we justify to ourselves the continuation of our docility, this obeisance to authority which we’ve practiced since childhood, he seeks avenues through which we can finally be true to ourselves.

I’d say he succeeds, if only we’ll take his lesson to heart.