Reviews

Man's Search for Meaning: An Introduction to Logotherapy by Viktor E. Frankl

bexworth's review against another edition

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hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

3.75

amyelle14's review against another edition

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4.0

I was so hooked with the first part of the book and the end of the book. The author uses his experiences as a Holocaust survivor to answer the question, "What's the meaning of life?"

I'm not going to give away the answer, because frankly, there is no one answer. However, this book was inspiring to read as I'm sure someone who has faced great evils would have the hardest time believing life could ever be beautiful.

howeslee's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring medium-paced

4.5

internetnomads's review against another edition

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5.0

As good as everyone else says it is. I was thinking it was going to turn into a religious self-help book but instead, Frankl addresses these concerns and moves on. He challenges us with finding meaning in our own lives. The question should not be asked by you, but directed to yourself: what are you going to do to create a life of meaning?

doroteadora's review against another edition

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3.0

3.5*
I really enjoyed the part when he is talking about his experience in the Holocaust but the psychological part was not very interesting to me. I suppose that is a time that I'm reading this book the biggest problem because I'm reading it for a project so I was looking for parts that I can use and trying to get as fast as possible through others...

linboynton's review against another edition

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dark informative inspiring reflective sad

4.75

vanitha's review against another edition

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5.0


"Don't aim at success. The more you aim at it and make it a target, the more you are going to miss it. For success, like happiness, cannot be pursued; it must ensue"

“Love is the only way to grasp another human being in the innermost core of his personality"

“In some ways suffering ceases to be suffering at the moment it finds a meaning, such as the meaning of a sacrifice.”

amidnightqueery's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful medium-paced

4.5

brookeringler's review against another edition

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4.0

Wow... I have read quite a few books about the Holocaust in the past, but none that approached it the way that Frankl did. I remember wondering what I would do in that given situation, and I hate to say it but I do not think I would have had the will to survive. Frankl enlightened me greatly about finding meaning in suffering, and what that meant for him and other prisoners at the time. It also gave me some insight on humanity and how I want to leave my impact.

I found it interesting how the book has essentially two parts - his experience in the concentration camps and what that taught him, and his theory of logotherapy. Honestly, I loved that it was both. I do not think I would have picked up a book about logotherapy just out of curiosity, but learned a lot from stumbling upon it. And it's very applicable for my work, especially when it related it to stuttering.

All in all, I find Victor E. Frankl to be an extraordinary human being, doctor, and writer. You can learn a lot from this book.

akemiwald's review against another edition

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5.0

I kept coming across so many references to this book recently that I figured I needed to make time to read it myself, and it was really a nice read. It actually complemented my recent reading of How Do I Live quite well. Both of them reinforce the idea that we have this one life and each moment is unrepeatable. This means that we must make decisions all the time about how we want to live our lives. A point in this book that I really enjoyed was that in contrast to valuing only current usefulness of future possibility, our pasts provide the opportunity of accruing our actual realities and what we choose to make up those realities are what we do in each moment. Having the certainty of having lived our past with integrity is something that is valuable indeed. There are many good reminders in this book, and so I'm glad I have my Kindle highlights to revisit in the future. I can definitely see why it has become a classic that is referenced often!