Ray of Hope
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In a topsy-turvy world where madness, greed, and evil are now the perceived normailty and "common sense", books like Walden are confirmation that it is better to be different to the majority.
Thoreau elaborately discusses the wisdom which some of us may at times have pondered on. Many future denizens of Hell, jealously target human beings who are earning more Heaven with each passing moment, and attack them to try and weaken their soul. But a well-read and discerning individual perseveres with ease, and remains authentic.
A wonderful example is where Thoreau speaks of the utter futility of those who profess to be charitable, but are in actual fact a part of the problem. Thoreau gives an analogy of a slave breeder, who donates the proceeds of every tenth slave, to buy a month of free Sundays for the first nine slaves he sold.
Walden is a rare combination of beauty and magic, shining light on todays hypocritical society, and helping genuine human beings who understand the true meaning of life, to evolve.
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Truly a world classic. Great writing. A life-changing read.
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This is a book to be pondered, to be read slowly, a book worth the effort to read in order to understand what Thoreau is saying, and to see the application to him- or herself, now, today. As happens with great writing, the reader is changed by this book. Even in reading the first few pages, the reader has a profound experience. Multiply that by reading Walden in entirety and the reader emerges a different person. However, the reader must be willing to enter into Thoreau's world and his experience. Readers who find such writing tedious are, one suspects, too used to reading fast-paced novels. For those with an interest in history, philosophy, the human condition, truth in reality, and simply in having an educated mind, there is no greater work. Walden is truly a world classic.
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Brilliant, Brilliant, Brilliant!
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One of the best books I have ever studied. Hidden gems await inside for anyone who reads this classic. If literature can be seen as a medium to express our thoughts in the deepest yet most lucid ways, then Walden must be in the top quartile of the best of them.
And all of this for a couple of quid? Buy it!
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Obsession with Beans
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As an addendum to the earlier reviews posted here I'd like to suggest that the obsession thoreau has with the price of beans is, like the cetology chapters in Moby Dick, or the compulsive list making of Robinson Crusoe, as much a device for creating a mood as a dry stocktaking exercise. Thoreau is demonstrating the ritualism of a solitary existence - if you lived alone in a hut in the woods, wouldn't you become obsessed with the fruits of your daily toil? It amounts to more than a hill of beans.
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A Jewel
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I find it hard to believe that the above reviewers are talking about the same book. This book is one of my personal treasures. Thoreau seems to embody the intelligence and wit of a great thinker with a childlike enthusiasm and excitement about the beauty of the natural world. When you combine that with his desire to live life and his respect for even the most humble of his fellow men you are in for some profound literature. This is not a book to be scan read or rushed through. Savour it, I don't see how you could be disappointed.
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