Sarah Schumacher

Short chapters, probably better read as one a day that in one sitting. If you enjoy his blog posts it's basically a book collection of those around the theme of emotional courage.

Excellent, although Whole Brain Child remains my #1 recommendation and is much shorter.

It feels like there are too many acronyms and steps/cycles, so definitely refer to the summary chart in the back. The whole book is overly wordy commentary on the “connect and redirect” strategy from Whole Brain Child.

This book is worth reading simply to make you think about the implications of common phrases you'd never otherwise think about. It's particularly relevant for parents, obviously, but as most people interact with children on some level it's on my books everyone should read list. The chapter “Behave Yourself” is the best.

It's less important that you agree with everything she puts forward, and more about making an informed decision on how you are choosing to parent your child and updating your language accordingly. It's amazing how universal (in the US) things like forced sharing and apologies are without a second thought as to whether they're even beneficial at all.

The only thing that stuck with me was how you have to “choose the third option every day.” Otherwise this book felt like a gratuitous recruiting tool for her subcontracting business.

If balancing momhood and entrepreneurship is a topic of interest for you, I highly recommend Making Work at Home Work: Successfully Growing a Business and a Family under One Roof by Mary M. Byers
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6361628

This book is based on the concept that autonomy = happiness (an oversimplification, but something you can read about in depth in other books). They advocate putting decision-making in the hands of the child. I already agree with this, but the quality of writing and questions at the end of each chapter help refine how to actually live this, practically. More relevant for parents of kids in school, vs toddlers, but still worth reading. This is one I would absolutely purchase for myself or other parents.

4.5 stars. I knew nothing about this book going in and really enjoyed it. It's an eclectic mix of good advice on a variety of topics, interspersed with personal stories. I think his concept of weighing your personal experience against the advice of others is particularly important. Could be a good introduction to a life hack mentality.

Warning, rant: I felt the need to leave 5 stars to offset the surprising number of 1 and 2 star reviews from people who apparently didn't bother actually reading this:

- he came from a small town and he (and I assume his siblings) were the first in his family to go to college.
- his parents didn't have the money for a private college; he had to help pay his way.
- his so-called dumb college stories were to reveal his lack of knowledge of what was acceptable in the business world (and lack of good advice from the people around him).
- the Dilbert characters stuck in cubicles? He was one of them for years. He got up at 4 am to work on Dilbert because at first it was a side hustle.
- many of his business failures were before Dilbert got big, and some involved hours of learning to code himself. Tell me that's not perseverance.
- he's had multiple serious health issues.

These are only the things he's chosen to write about, and only in this book.

Yes, he's rich and famous NOW, but the reviewers complaining about how “lucky” he is are missing the entire point of the book, not to mention skipping over what he actually wrote. It's clear he tried not to come across as out of touch. The general public assumes that an overnight success is actually a thing, simply because they don't see the blood, sweat and tears that an artist or entrepreneur pour into their work, or all failures that came before. He's trying to let you in on that and for some people, it didn't appear to work. I agree with him; your job is to make it easier for luck to find you, which is exactly what this book is about.

In my opinion, the only people with a right to complain that he's just lucky are the most disadvantaged among us, who could probably level that complaint against anyone on the low end of middle class.

Super quick read (less than an hour).

The book is actually a fictional story about a mentoring relationship they break down into bullet points. Think E-Myth story but with 0.00136% of the pontificating. A little cheesy but an effective way of communicating their MENTOR principles while remaining engaging.

Worth reading for as short as it is. I've had more time wasted by unnecessary phone calls.

Generally I only give 5 stars if I can't think of any way the book could be improved. In this case, I would like to have seen diagrams in each chapter and I wonder if the introduction was perhaps too simple and straightforward for those with no prior knowledge of the Enneagram. That's it though.

The beginning chapters and stories are great. It then jumps right into the material you really want to read; there's no fluff here. It's only as long as it needs to be, entertaining to read, and drives home one of the most important aspects of the Enneagram; compassion and a greater understanding for people who don't see the world the way that you do. I wish everyone could grasp the importance of self-awareness and self-knowledge, and learning about the Enneagram is an incredibly useful tool in that process.

Enjoyable but forgettable. I had a vague memory of a single scene that I recognized halfway through, otherwise no recollection of plot or characters since reading this as a kid. I think it's one of those things you had to have loved as a child (doesn't hold up against adult science fiction, leaves too much unexplained, etc). Also, nothing makes me speed read quicker than angsty teenager outbursts.

4.5 stars.

I haven't read all of her books (yet), but it feels like this is where it all began (though this isn't her first book). There are common threads that run throughout her books, so I could see them developing here.

Also, if the short, excellent chapter on Meaningful Work spoke to you, I'd suggest picking up one of my perennial favorites: The Crossroads of Should and Must by Elle Luna.

The fact that this book felt so timely with all the polarization happening right now makes me wonder if it will still feel relevant in 10 years. Not that I have high hopes for the future of discourse in America, but mentioning the current political climate is a good way to date things. Nonetheless, I think it's a good reminder to step outside the echo chambers. Unfortunately, I think the people that most need to read this book are the people who never will.

The concept behind Braving the Wilderness was nice in theory, but didn't quite come together for me. The whole book felt a bit short, rushed? And while I thought YES! in the beginning, it felt like it ended too soon, or on the wrong note. While I think it's worth reading, it's not my favorite of Brené Brown's.

I read this in order to compare to A Brief History of Time, thinking this might be a better recommendation for most people. Both books felt pretty much the same to me (although I didn't read them back to back).

I was particularly interested in the presence of more diagrams. My purely scientific thoughts on those, however, were “meh”. It felt like an excuse to advertise “color pictures!” without actually including anything of value.

I'd stick with the original, which I do recommend.

3.5 stars. I can see why it was an important book, although it was hard to get through. With the number of books on EQ available now I imagine there are better options. Actually, I would venture that we're now approaching a new iteration of this in the form of mindfulness (self-awareness), particularly as a component of meditation practice.

So this might be the book that started it all, but I don't find it a must-read. I feel that the science and psychology, at least among the genres I read, is mostly common knowledge at this point.

A rather unpleasant way to end the series, particularly spoiled by the presence of the surprise daughter; the stereotypical selfish, needy tween girl (which is a solid way to ruin any form of media).

I'm selective with my 5 stars, so I was surprised by all the negative reviews. I think most of the negative reviewers are simply not the target audience for this book. I saw no marketing; I found this title on a list of books recommended by TED presenters. Here's who I think should read this.

If you:
- are a woman
- are married/in a committed relationship
- have at least one (probably young) kid
- are ambitious, invested in your work/career/art
- feel like the burden of everything at home, w/kid(s), weighs on you alone (default mode overwhelmed)
- wish your significant other would share more of the workload
- resent feeling like your work life needs to take a backseat to home life because why do women's careers matter less than men's for real though?

Then this book is for you. I would classify it as more of a marriage book for business-minded women, with a hint of memoir. Feminist in all the right ways while being respectful. Highly, highly recommended.

(I have not read Lean In so I can't compare).

3.5 stars. Disappointing that this one mostly takes place on earth and ending falls a bit flat.

This one has more of what you would call a plot. My favorite of the series after #1.

This one is a bit hard to follow, but might have to do with the repetition of two chapters in different places in my book. Then again, it might have been on purpose. Time travel is confusing.

Longtime fan. Have to read this every 5 years or so. Perhaps an acquired taste, but it combines two of my favorite things; British humour and books. Nonsensical, funny space fiction punctuated by creative word sequences and astute observations.

First third is a totally fascinating story of how he got started with his business and how the tech world has progressed as a whole. The rest of it (advice, lessons learned) is must read material for CEOs or entrepreneurs managing people.

The epilogue (A New View of Science) is the best part of this book and should be required reading for everyone.

I've read a lot on the Enneagram Institute website, and other than different type descriptions, there's nothing new here. You can take a different (and in my opinion, more accurate) test online as well. The history/origin of the Enneagram, or more in-depth psychology observations would better lend itself to book format, but this is not it.

I much prefer (and highly recommend) The Road Back to You by Ian Cron and Suzanne Stabile.

There are better books on the microbiome. If/when I read one I'll update this review. UPDATE: I Contain Multitudes by Ed Yong is fantastic - start there.

This book felt meandering, with a lot of postulating about implications of small studies. What little actionable information you get in the last chapter is exactly what you'd expect. There's no clear goal beyond general education and interesting theories.

Overall I don't feel like I got any value out of this, with the exception of his computer vs machine gut explanation in the intro, and realizing how short the window of influence during pregnancy/first 3 years of life is in developing a healthy gut flora.

There's so much packed in here I think I'd need to read it again in order to retain it all. Definitely recommended for those interested in the subject matter.

The entire book could be summed up with a quick description of the fixed vs. growth mindset. Carol Dweck's work is cited in practically every book I read and it's incredibly important, but I didn't feel like it needed an entire book.

TLDR; if you know about the growth mindset, develop it. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, read this until you get it, then skip to chapter 8.