Heather

Really nice read. I loved the character development and description of relationships as they evolved. Cool foreshadowing in the chapter intros too. I will be finishing this series.

I think I had over-inflated expectations of this book which results in my mediocre review. The principles in the book are solid, but fairly simplistic. If you like military culture then this book is a good choice for you, but it didn't hit home for me. I have immense respect for people who put their lives on the line, and the authors of the book are clearly skilled leaders in their field. Their stories about their mission in Iraq were interesting to read but I felt that the transfer of principles to business were a bit shallow. Most of the chapters were in the format 1) Tell exciting war stories 2) Expound upon a leadership principle 3) Tell a story about a business scenario 4) Conclude “look the principle works”.

A lot of people I know have read this book or have strong opinions (in both directions) on Jordan Peterson. I tried to take the information as it was presented without reading through the lens of “what so-and-so would think of this”, but sometimes that was difficult.

On the whole I enjoyed it. I thought Peterson had some valuable observations about culture, history, psychology, spirituality, all sorts of things. I didn't feel that most of his opinions were revolutionary to me - I have already heard most of his ideas in different forms. In that respect this was not a life-changing book.

Peterson is a good writer. I found myself highlighting and saving quotes all the way through, not because I agreed with everything he said, but because he captured an old idea in a poignant or clever way. A lot of this book is clearly his opinion, and it comes across as such. He isn't afraid to say what he thinks, sometimes caustically, which is refreshing.

Peterson put a lot of his own personal history into this book. If you care to know who he is, and how he came to be that way, you can find out by reading 12 Rules for Life. He has endured some tragedies, lost friends to suicide, intently studied the dark parts of history (Soviet Russia, the Holocaust etc.), and come out fairly whole. Despite heavy references to Christianity, God, and the Bible I would categorize this as a staunchly secular book.

He proposes a worldview that is moral and emotional, not at all austere or intellectual as many modern philosophers tend to do, but without the accoutrements of religious tradition or mysticism. It is an attractive modern worldview for modern times, but personally I am left unsatisfied. It would take a much longer review and a much closer reading of 12 Rules to pinpoint the source of my dissatisfaction. Perhaps it is something in me that craves the mystical and transcendent explanations for life, despite their caprices and inconsistencies.

12 Rules was a worthwhile read and provides fodder for many excellent campfire conversations down the road.

The chapters were pretty long but on the whole it was well-organized and thoroughly researched. Not exactly light reading. Often it felt dense and informational so could also be directed more at a scholarly audience. Even so, the story of Elizabeth I is fascinating and I felt it was worth the read.

I liked this one better than Mistborn but I cannot get into Brandon Sanderson. I find his stuff too cinematic and overly dramatic. He creates this massive buildup and really anticlimatic endings. It might make a decent B movie but was fairly disappointing as a novel.