Wednesday, June 17, 2009

What-I'm-Reading-Wednesday 6-17-09

Ok, I finally finished reading Gavin de Becker's book, The Gift of Fear. I started it about 6 months ago!

Am I glad I read it? Definitely.

Will I read it again? Probably the first one-third of it.

Reflections? I would break the book down in this way:
Beginning: very helpful - great premise. Middle: very interesting. End: Meh.
The idea that we are already experts in human behaviour, as well as the part our intuition plays in helping us avoid/survive danger was fascinating. I think that's the part of the book that may (as the cover claims) "save your life." The middle of the book covered things like stalking, celebrities, and assassinations. Not so much use to me. Some, just not a ton. This was the part of the book I got bogged down with - and why it took me so long to finish it. The end of the book (last chapter and epilogue) is sort of a recap, which is fine, and it discusses differences between "real fear", anxiety, worry, doubt, etc. I found that somewhat interesting, but not necessarily helpful. I'm not trying to be a hater, I did enjoy the book, and others' mileage may vary greatly. One other thing: I did not care for Mr. de Becker's anti-gun views in a few places in the book. I'll rant expound on 2 specific examples from pages 306 and 307 in tomorrow's "Thursday Thoughts".

Recommended? Yes.

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