Constantine

I do not remember the last time I finished a book in less than 48 hours. It might be because I am procrastinating. Then again, that could be true for any other day of the week.

Anyway, I am not a father. I am not even married. I have roomed with fathers in my lifetime. Does that count? I listened to their stories of what it is like to be a father.

This book is not my regular cup of tea, but I found the synopsis of the book interesting. And I am glad I did. The book was hilarious. There were so many times I wanted to take a photo and send it to my friends. There were a lot of pop references. So, this book might not be for everyone, but I loved it!

I found this book to be quite entertaining. I have watched the show in order once and so many episodes multiple times. Even when I watched the show in order, I still remember a time when I dropped watching TBBT because I did not think it was my cup of tea. And when I watched the finale, I had reservations about how the character arc ended with some cast. I did not read this book because TBBT was my most TV show. Hence, I am happy I am giving this book a five-star rating, especially since it's the first book I've read in this particular genre.

This book has given meaning to all my tv watching hours. It allows the readers to observe the writers' creative process as they developed the characters. To most of my reservations, I know what made them go in that particular direction. The book had a behind-the-scenes feel to it as if the reader was getting a glimpse into something not usually seen. This book covers all the controversies, including Howard's crude jokes, Johnny and Kaley's relationship, and the character endings of Raj and Penny.

It was touching to gain insight into the writers' and cast's struggles during the early seasons. In every show, some things are perfect, and some moments have room for improvement. This book addresses all those things. It also talked about the nervousness around the grand moments. Including famous people is not a big deal. However, many writers showed up in this book. That deserved brownie points. Those are the perspectives I wanted to hear.

Anything spanning twelve years deserves their plaudits as well as their flaws. I have never been shy about pointing at those flaws. That said, this show has had an incredible amount of positive impact.

Here are a few episode arcs I wish they had included in the show.
- Howard meeting his father.
- Leonard brothers' outlook on Leonard.
- How Penny agreed to have a baby.
- Priya interacting positively with the Leonard-Penny couple.

Anyway, this was a wonderfully written book. Kudos to the author, writers, producers and the cast!

I would give it 4.5.

I feel bad that I did not give this book 5/5 because it had multiple perfect moments. It came across that he is such a down-to-earth guy. He has fleshed out and shared a lot of big, impactful moments of his life in a witty manner. I loved his deadpan humor. He talked about his upbringing, relationship dynamic with his parents and grandparents, his “lovely” time at Deloitte, the struggles he went through as an immigrant, and his struggles as an actor. However, I wish he had spent more time explaining the reconciliation with his parents. He does not have to share everything. I know, I know. I am with you, a reader of my comment. But now, I do not have closure on how this happened. Therefore, the story feels incomplete. Just a teensy weensie bit.

Another thing I appreciated is that he did not go on and on about Shang-chi. Yes, that was his big break. And it was an immense win for the world. However, there are so many interviews you can watch to satiate that curiosity. I wanted to know the life that Simu lived. Am I able to picture it after reading the book? Yes, I think I was able to do that.

What did I just read? This is why Memoirs are fascinating. Instead of thinking of what is right and what is wrong, you solely understand what a person has gone through. Not only was I able to see Trevor's perspective, but I also got to know the events that shaped Trevor's life before he came to America.

I never watched the Daily Show with Trevor Noah (DSwTN) regularly. For the most part, I only watched the Behind The Scenes section, from time to time. So, I have known about a few of the stories. And I had many thoughts. Maybe, I waited too much. Maybe, I should have read the book sooner. Maybe, I knew too many spoilers. Well, the good thing is, I was wrong. Being able to see a detailed picture of these stories was something else.

I loved the stories of Trevor as a hustler as well as his adolescent life. It was not very emotive. But, I never lost focus of the story. There were so many funny moments. I legitimately laughed out loud multiple times. As for the stories that involved Trevor's ‘father figures', they evoked some emotion in me. And I want to give Trevor a lot of credit for being able to write those stories in an empathetic manner. I do not know how much time he spent writing these stories. That said, I am glad he was able to do it.

His mother was a remarkable character, very inspiring. Seeing the humor, in putting herself in the backseat, during some serious moments, was very heartening. Some jokes may have come as a bit crude. But, I think that was the quality that made Trevor Boah the stand-up comedian he is—having the trust in the other party to take the joke the right way.

I have known that Trevor Noah is a great storyteller, with his voice, from his stand-ups and the DSwTN. Now, I know he can be a great author too. Hopefully, he composes another book about his American life, with not many chapters on the Former US president. Having seen his stand-ups, I am confident that he would be able to do it.

PS: I wish the stories were shared in chronological order. Or, at least, more effort was put into the transitions between multiple chapters. However, that is a bone I want to pick with the editor. So, that is why I am not taking away a rating from this fantastic book.

Lily had a lot of good things to say. Each chapter had a good life lesson. If people have watched her videos, they can see how the styles are really similar. She has quick and small anecdotes in each chapter. And she has references that any people can relate to. In that sense, I can see why this book won a Goodreads award in 2017.

That being said, this is a very general book. Anytime someone writes a book of ideas on how to lead a better life, it will be a hard read. Because the book is not expanding on a single idea. So, the book does not reinforce the same message. The problem with books like this is that it would feel like an hour-long compilation of 10-20 short videos instead of an actual hour-long video. It hits differently. And it felt rushed. An unfortunate consequence of that is that the anecdotes did not always click.

I would recommend this book to someone who does not have the reading habit. Or, read each chapter like a 50-day challenge. Get someone to do it with you. And each day, you talk to your friend/family regarding the chapter. Because the things she had to say, had substance.

I would give this book a five. But, it's supposed to be read in the right way. This book improves your self awareness by creating distinct differences between different similar emotions. It does not give you actions on what to do when you're feeling a certain emotion. If that's what you're looking for, this is not the right book for you. If you take out the dictionary and look for the definitions of all these emotions, you'll be bored half way. So, Brene Brown has written a book with definitions and anecdotes. She has brought the human element into this book.

The book had some really good definitions. And, I listened to the audiobook. And the narration was brilliant. It felt like having a conversation with the author. While you're reading the book, try to have as many conversations with people as possible. If you don't talk about the book with people, you're missing out.

Anyway, happy reading!

It was nice that the book was not just about the movies. She talked about a lot more things. The way she talked about grief, bullying, feeling abandoned were very commendable. Although, it would be nice if she writes another book about the Bollywood industry, including what went right for her and what went wrong.

The ending was not a big hurrah. And, there were certain times she could have gone deeper in the story. Maybe the editor decided to make the book shorter. But, that definitely made the stories feel a bit incomplete.

Also, I see a lot of reviews on why she did not sue the surgeon. As someone from India, personally, I did not pick up on that. Usually, that is not my first instinct. In fact, on a minor scale, I have faced a similar issue as well. Now, I am thinking why I did not think about suing either. That is a question for me to ponder as well.

She is a first time author. Therefore, I guess, we should not expect too much from her. I would recommend people to read some specific chapters which were wonderful.

Normally I don't write reviews. However, I just loved this book. I finished this book in three days. This book is even better than the other 3 books. Generally, the last but one book is average because it is justing everything up for the last book.

Many characters were introduced in this book.
Good character development.

Can't wait for fall 2017 for the last book to come out.

I would recommend this series to any fantasy lover.

How have I not read this book till now? If you like Ole, you'll like him even more after reading this book. It's a great read.

I will give this book 4.5 stars.

The ideas mentioned in the book are straightforward. In fact, you might know these things subconsciously. Creating a system within that relatability factor across generations underlies the movie's crux. The terminology of entrepreneur, manager, and technician should be used more widely. This book deserves the spot on the list of classics. It provides an excellent framework for understanding different perspectives. The book also emphasizes the importance of systematizing one's life and finding a balance between serving our jobs and having our jobs serve us. In addition, it shares enough anecdotes to remember the ideas as well.

I deducted 0.5 from this book because it was needlessly dragged out.

Great book. Each nugget had a unique message. I am glad this is one of the first few books I read in 2020. I would totally recommend it to anyone who likes self-help books.

I'd rate this book 4.5/5

The overall message is something I agree with. Behavioural economics is always a fun topic of discourse.

I really liked the examples that were used. As someone in my twenties, I have moved from apartment to apartment, quite a bit. So, I have bought furniture and sold furniture. And I always feel very accomplished when I am able to follow the guide sheet and set up Ikea furniture. While reading this book, it hit me that Ikea's business model is brilliant. It defies logic, before taking a close look at it. ;)

I also liked how some emotions were explored. It had enough experiments, research as well as anecdotes to keep me interested. I use the inferences from these experiments in regular conversation. I liked that he shared how some of his hypothesizes were also wrong.

3.5/5 TBH.

This book is not a timeless piece. Plus, in the age of Feminism, I can see why there's a lot of flak against this book. That being said. I did relate to a few things. And in cultures that value traditional values, this is a good book, for them. I can why people rated this book 1/5 or 5/5.

This book was written around 25 years ago. So, if you read the book with that in mind, you might enjoy the experience.

After reading this book, I asked many questions to my friends. We had multiple deep conversations. Therefore, it was worth reading this book for me.

Most of the tactics would work even in 2021. It's still a good book to read.

I am surprised at how many things are still relevant in 2022. And, the narration of his stories have worked out well too.

This book was NOT one of the few books I read in the self-help genre. I keep changing my opinion on this book. I am writing this review on one of the good days. Hence, you can see the high rating. Sometimes, this book is brilliant because it presents some harsh realities that one must acknowledge.
Moreover, it offers a great system with valuable strategies. On other occasions, it feels like a summary of many other self-help books, making me feel like I came to it too late. However, it is one of those books you can read multiple times. It can be a great resource when you feel stuck and need help figuring out what to do next. Nevertheless, it is also an excellent book when you have no worries and want to fulfill your self-actualization needs.

Great book!

It was good and short. But, there were some obvious ones too.