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A review by mariekejee
The Anthropocene Reviewed: Essays on a Human-Centered Planet by John Green
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
I have always appreciated listening to Green's more philosophical work, regardless of the subject. The way he talks about the world is filled with hope, but not in a naive sense - in a necessary sense. When he talks about having dealt with depression and a nervous breakdown, Green writes, "For me, finding hope is not some philosophical exercise or sentimental notion; it is a prerequisite for my survival."
This book came out in 2021 and is a clear product of the covid-19 pandemic. Certain pieces definitely hit harder when I started reading it two years ago, but they don't lose their importance in any case.
I cried reading this book on holiday so often that, had my family not already been aware of my spotty mental health, they surely would have started to worry. The essays on googling strangers and the movie Harvey especially had me emotional. John Green is a bit of a romantic, but he's very clearly not romanticizing (mental) illness. In the dry, honest way he talks about being ill, I find myself being comforted and given hope.
Struggling with mental health isn't something that is supposed to give another outlook on life that will change your world, it just is something you will have to live with, something that will sometimes suck. But despite this, Green's writing gives me hope that better things are coming, not because, but in spite of what I may be dealing with.
I have loved every moment of reading this book. No doubt my experience is changed because I was already familiar with John Green both as a writer and a person (which made it very easy to read it in his voice), but most of the essays touched me. They were deeply personal, and in the way that many of the anxieties and thoughts and feelings were easy to relate to, became personal to me too.
I hope Green decides to return to non-fiction sometime in the future, but for now I will probably be re-reading some of these essays for a long time.
This book came out in 2021 and is a clear product of the covid-19 pandemic. Certain pieces definitely hit harder when I started reading it two years ago, but they don't lose their importance in any case.
I cried reading this book on holiday so often that, had my family not already been aware of my spotty mental health, they surely would have started to worry. The essays on googling strangers and the movie Harvey especially had me emotional. John Green is a bit of a romantic, but he's very clearly not romanticizing (mental) illness. In the dry, honest way he talks about being ill, I find myself being comforted and given hope.
Struggling with mental health isn't something that is supposed to give another outlook on life that will change your world, it just is something you will have to live with, something that will sometimes suck. But despite this, Green's writing gives me hope that better things are coming, not because, but in spite of what I may be dealing with.
I have loved every moment of reading this book. No doubt my experience is changed because I was already familiar with John Green both as a writer and a person (which made it very easy to read it in his voice), but most of the essays touched me. They were deeply personal, and in the way that many of the anxieties and thoughts and feelings were easy to relate to, became personal to me too.
I hope Green decides to return to non-fiction sometime in the future, but for now I will probably be re-reading some of these essays for a long time.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness