buffee's review
4.0
this book was inspiring for getting in touch with my sense of play. i've always felt it whenever i go into nature or am exercising in the outdoors or just when i'm being especially aware of my surroundings, whether they be people or just outdoors - but ms. ackerman has a way of putting the feeling of that into words that i do not. also, she was a student and friend of mr. carl sagan and it was nice to hear her anecdotes even though he had recently lost a long fight with cancer.
veewatson's review
4.0
I loved the beautiful and lyrical prose and the subject matter. This book was full of history mixed with the author's experiences and journalling. I thought most of it was extremely interesting but all it did was peak my interest to read her references. It wasn't as cohesive as I would have hoped. It was neither a collection of creative non fiction essays nor a treatise on the subject of play. It lightly brushed against a lot of the deeper psychology, sociology, historical meaning and spiritual elements without exploring it beyond her quick take on the tidbit of information. It could have been more in depth, had more of arch or each chapter could have been treated as an essay with it's own theme. I still enjoyed it and was happy to read it. She's a wonderful writer.
ariel_bloomer's review
2.0
When I was not thinking "Damn, Diane, who are you???", the religious studies major in me was cringing at her contradictory forays into the sacred and profane.
emilydufford's review
informative
slow-paced
2.75
Still not sure what this book was about. I was so excited to read another Diane Ackerman book but this was a disappointment.
canadianbookworm's review against another edition
2.0
Not as enjoyable as her other books. Found it jumpy.
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