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carolann331's review against another edition
4.0
This awesome little book is jam-packed with interesting info about personality types. Something I really appreciated about this book is the overall message that the Enneagram is not intended to place you in a box, but instead to help you understand your strengths and limitations and those of others. Clear, concise, doable exercises are provided to help you increase your awareness and transform your limitations into strengths that will ultimately bring you more fulfilling relationships and enrich your life.
racheldrake's review against another edition
4.0
This is the best start to the enneagram I have read thus far. It claims to be eerily accurate and it is true! If you came to learn more about yourself, this is the book for you. If you came to learn more about the enneagram and more in depth about each type, I would suggest looking elsewhere. That is the only reason I gave it a 4. It didn’t go into wings, security types, or stress types too much. And the self development section left me a bit disappointed. But again, it is a great place to start before you do more research! Also, loved the section on type discriminators which really helped me to narrow down what type I am!
wildbibliophile's review against another edition
4.0
This is a great resource for the enneagram; especially for beginners! I really enjoyed reading more about the enneagram and loved the paragraph test style.
tplattenburg's review
2.0
I had heard lots of people really into enneagrams so was curious. It’s not the personality test that I’ve connected with the most- but for those curious I’m a 9w1.
Too much overall focus on journaling, which is not my cup of tea, but interesting as a source of reflection and to learn what all the fuss is about.
Too much overall focus on journaling, which is not my cup of tea, but interesting as a source of reflection and to learn what all the fuss is about.
bvogel's review against another edition
2.0
Hard to follow on a kindle. The assessments require flipping back and forth a bunch. There are better enneagram books out there.
delights's review
1.0
I had high hopes for this book. Although I never heard of Virginia Price, David Daniels seems to be really well respected between the Enneagram community. Beatrice Chestnut talked about him in her book, "The Complete Enneagram", Helen Palmer even wrote something for this book and worked with him, he appears on Katherine's Fauvre video about the Tritype, etc. But...
This book should be called something along the lines of "The Enneagram Journal" or something like that, not "The Essential Enneagram". It didn't really deliver the essential. By the way, this book promises to deliver you answers about your actual type, but I am afraid I would selftype as 9w1 925 if I only read this book. My type is SP2w1 296. Well, let's go by topics:
1. The Enneagram Test
It was actually pretty nice. I liked it, despite being very simple. Unfortunately, Appendix B, in the end of the book, is the only part that really talks about the scientifically efficiency of it. Sincerely, I expected it to be the highlight of the book by it's introduction.
2. The Type Descriptions
I felt like I was reading a “bad” website. They were SO simple, to the point they seemed like stereotypes. There's no depth about the defense mechanisms involving the types or any of the other essential things. It was mostly traits.
3. Where are the subtypes?
It was pretty much just ONE PAGE for subtypes. They just wrote in the most lazy way about the instinctual variants, giving a general idea and not how they affect the type focus — Naranjo would be SO ashamed.
4. WHY SO MUCH SELF-HELP?
The book is supposed to cover the basics of the Enneagram, but... it's mostly empty self-help with copy pasted content with slight changes for each type. Just... why?
Well, I could say more stuff but... I feel like there's no need. I pretty much recommend Riso-Hudson, Naranjo and Chestnut, if you would like to dive deeper on the Enneagram. The book written by Chestnut that I mentioned in the beginning is really good for starting, Riso's and Hudson's "The Wisdom of the Enneagram" is good too!
This book should be called something along the lines of "The Enneagram Journal" or something like that, not "The Essential Enneagram". It didn't really deliver the essential. By the way, this book promises to deliver you answers about your actual type, but I am afraid I would selftype as 9w1 925 if I only read this book. My type is SP2w1 296. Well, let's go by topics:
1. The Enneagram Test
It was actually pretty nice. I liked it, despite being very simple. Unfortunately, Appendix B, in the end of the book, is the only part that really talks about the scientifically efficiency of it. Sincerely, I expected it to be the highlight of the book by it's introduction.
2. The Type Descriptions
I felt like I was reading a “bad” website. They were SO simple, to the point they seemed like stereotypes. There's no depth about the defense mechanisms involving the types or any of the other essential things. It was mostly traits.
3. Where are the subtypes?
It was pretty much just ONE PAGE for subtypes. They just wrote in the most lazy way about the instinctual variants, giving a general idea and not how they affect the type focus — Naranjo would be SO ashamed.
4. WHY SO MUCH SELF-HELP?
The book is supposed to cover the basics of the Enneagram, but... it's mostly empty self-help with copy pasted content with slight changes for each type. Just... why?
Well, I could say more stuff but... I feel like there's no need. I pretty much recommend Riso-Hudson, Naranjo and Chestnut, if you would like to dive deeper on the Enneagram. The book written by Chestnut that I mentioned in the beginning is really good for starting, Riso's and Hudson's "The Wisdom of the Enneagram" is good too!
notesonbookmarks's review
1.0
all that this book did for me was confirm that I'm a 2. I don't feel like I learned much of anything about myself as it was SO bare bones regarding each type. I'm hoping that the other enneagram books I have will help me dive deeper into what my type really means, how I interact with others (I believe my husband to be a 3), and help me to learn more about the enneagram and its modern applications. I have to assume there are better options out there for all of this, so don't waste your time or money on this cursory overview.
kellyxmen's review
3.0
I love the format of this book. Each type is described using a plethora of keywords. I find this format particularly helpful and efficient in mapping out the vibe for each type.
It’s so useful that I was able to type my best friend/roommate/boyfriend instantly. People suggest not typing others but when I read him the description he started laughing and flipping out at the accuracy and said, “There are OTHER people like me? This is a TYPE? What book is this??”
I adore this book.
It’s so useful that I was able to type my best friend/roommate/boyfriend instantly. People suggest not typing others but when I read him the description he started laughing and flipping out at the accuracy and said, “There are OTHER people like me? This is a TYPE? What book is this??”
I adore this book.