A review by twilliams1987
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life by Mark Manson
1.0
This book had been on my to-be-read list for a long time and I was excited to pick it up. In the end, I wish I hadn’t.
The book started off strong and had some interesting food for thought. Manson’s point that constantly thinking about all the things you want, the things that you THINK will make you happy, is actually the thing making you miserable struck a chord with me. However, after the first chapter or two, it started to read like every other self-help book ever, but packaged up in the VERY arrogant, VERY male voice of the author.
I listened to the audiobook, and perhaps that is part of what put a such a sour taste in my mouth. The narrator is insufferable. His impressions of women are breathy and high pitched, making every woman sound like a clueless lost puppy. His impression of Malala was borderline offensive. When he imitated other men, it wasn’t much better–they were ALWAYS higher pitched and breathier than his own voice, as if the author is the only person deserving of a real human speaking voice; like everyone else lacks any self-confidence or awareness at all. I understand that the people he is using as examples are often people exhibiting those lost feelings his book is trying to help direct, but boy, it was IRRITATING. Hint to narrators and any author of a “self-help” book: if you make everyone seeking advice sound like a clueless nitwit, you’re showing your true colors.
I think I’ve come to realize that most self-help books actually have pretty similar advice, just packaged a little differently, and a reader’s reception of that advice will greatly depend on this package and delivery. Manson’s arrogance and stark maleness made this book a hard one for me to swallow. I ended up grinding to the end. Frankly, I wish I had just put it down.
The book started off strong and had some interesting food for thought. Manson’s point that constantly thinking about all the things you want, the things that you THINK will make you happy, is actually the thing making you miserable struck a chord with me. However, after the first chapter or two, it started to read like every other self-help book ever, but packaged up in the VERY arrogant, VERY male voice of the author.
I listened to the audiobook, and perhaps that is part of what put a such a sour taste in my mouth. The narrator is insufferable. His impressions of women are breathy and high pitched, making every woman sound like a clueless lost puppy. His impression of Malala was borderline offensive. When he imitated other men, it wasn’t much better–they were ALWAYS higher pitched and breathier than his own voice, as if the author is the only person deserving of a real human speaking voice; like everyone else lacks any self-confidence or awareness at all. I understand that the people he is using as examples are often people exhibiting those lost feelings his book is trying to help direct, but boy, it was IRRITATING. Hint to narrators and any author of a “self-help” book: if you make everyone seeking advice sound like a clueless nitwit, you’re showing your true colors.
I think I’ve come to realize that most self-help books actually have pretty similar advice, just packaged a little differently, and a reader’s reception of that advice will greatly depend on this package and delivery. Manson’s arrogance and stark maleness made this book a hard one for me to swallow. I ended up grinding to the end. Frankly, I wish I had just put it down.