Jonathan

It's funny that this book is a biblical allegory, because its moral philosophy is just as outdated as the Bible's. Maybe now I understand why everyone hated that they gave Steinbeck the Nobel Prize. Steinbeck thought in 1952 that the world was morally decaying, and he was right, and he was right about the role that capitalism and industrialization played in it, but he did not have to write something so condescending, simplistic, and yes, misogynistic. Humanity didn't need biblical allegories in 1952 written by CIA assets who supported the war in Vietnam, and we don't need them now. It's ridiculous to believe in generational curses and original sin, it's ridiculous to write simplistic metaphors and exaggerations of good and evil based on the Bible.

It's funny how this book is probably the most repetitive book that has ever become popular. I think that speaks volumes about how necessary and timeless all Stoic philosophy, wisdom and ethics are, even if we discard its logic and physics.

I like the first 20 chapters over the last 10, however, I really liked the ending. That ending is a gut punch.
Now I understand why Lady Bird and mom were crying in that film.
I also understand why other people despise this book, as Steinbeck wrote in a very messy way.

DNF. Cannot take more of Ian and Emma, and Emma and Dexter, I was beginning to dread reading not just this book, but anything.

In this book Mark Manson continues with his mostly juvenile approach to self-help. I find bits of it valuable, but much of it it's rehashed from his other famous book.