This book is so full of gold, it’s kinda ridiculous. The way it’s written - highly unstructured - you never know when he’s gonna whack you over the head with some new wisdom - but he will. And he’s doing it in a highly concise way, often using a single sentence to perfectly sum up a valuable insight. It is sort of repetitive, but in a good way - like going to the gym.
What strikes me time and time again is the immense humility this man has. In all his efforts to become a good man, he constantly calls out his tendency to feel superior for being “the bigger man”, and reminds himself that this is just what he’s here for.
It is a one-of-a-kind reading experience, given the fact that it was never supposed to be read by someone other than him, and that makes it even more authentic.
Heard about it first in 2019 on my first deep dive into Stoicism, but recently, Josh talked about how impactful it was for him, so I finally gave it a go.
Anyone that’s into Stoicism, naturally. Beyond that, I think you need to bring a certain curiosity for the topic & ancient philosophy in general, as it’s definitely not the most accessible book. I think that everyone that has just been introduced to the ideas of stoicism and wants to dive deeper now, is the perfect fit for this.
<aside> 💡 How my life / behaviour / thoughts / ideas have changed as a result of reading the book.
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