Rating: 
Summary: Very Disappointed
Review: For a book on Genius, I couldn't have been more disappointed. Any arguments for identifying the specific characteristics were lost in the author's constant barrage of personal world views and prejudices. I found nothing in this writing at all that was inspiring, in fact just the opposite. Exercises were old and frame of references were non-existent. Not only did I waste my money but I wasted my time.
Rating: 
Summary: Keys to a fulfilled life
Review: Gelb has done it again! Discover Your Genius harvests the core gift of each mind and provides direct access to the same greatness within each of us. Ulimately, Gelb hands the keys to a fulfilled life to us through this book!Undoubtly, I will use the suggested techniques in my work as a teacher and in my personal life as a mother, friend, etc. For sure to be another National Best Seller!
Rating: 
Summary: Read some REAL biographies instead...
Review: I didn't find this book the least bit inspiring. If you've ever read individual biographies of a few of the people the author covers in the book (namely Brunelleschi, Columbus, Copernicus, Elizabeth I, Shakespeare, Jefferson, Darwin, and Ghandi), then you probably won't find anything new or particularly inspiring about the book either. If on the other hand you don't even know who the above people are, then this book is for you! However, I found this to be an excellent example of how to package your high school research papers into a commercial book. Seriously, for someone who is supposed to be an engaging and uplifting speaker, the author didn't deliver.
Rating:
Summary: Inspiring and Educational
Review: Michael Gelb provides readers with insightful glimpses of ten of history's most important thinkers. Each person offers a particular characteristic that Gelb emphasizes to teach the reader how he/she can imitate the great ones.
His profiles of each person also give the reader brief biographies covering the highlights of their lives and contributions. These were enlightening for the people I was not familar with before and even for the ones I am very familar with like Shakespeare. Gelb brings out details that are new to me about the famous Bard that I thought I knew inside and out.
He also discusses their weaknesses, such as Einstein's undisciplined personal life that contrasted greatly with his ideas of an orderly universe.
This book prompted me to do some creative thinking of my own and I hope it gave me some long-lasting ideas about how to develop and utilize my own abilities.
Rating:
Summary: Engaging biographies and life-improving advice
Review: Much like Michael Gelb's brilliant "How to Think Like Leonardo DaVinci" this book succeeds in giving the reader engaging and informative biographies, while at the same time encouraging you to live and think like them. The book is written in an easy, conversational style that gives the reader the feeling that he/she is having a delightful talk with the writer about the world's greatest thinkers. Many times I have attempted to read up on geniuses like Plato, Darwin, and Ghandi with the intent of modeling my life after their examples, but I couldn't find the time to finish the marathon-length biographies I came across; "Discover Your Genius" is exactly what I was looking for--it gave me vast amounts of interesting information on each of the 10 geniuses and immediately showed me what I can do to improve myself with their examples. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has ever wondered what a genius is like and how you can enrich your life everyday by emulating them.
Rating:
Summary: Engaging biographies and life-improving advice
Review: Much like Michael Gelb's brilliant "How to Think Like Leonardo DaVinci" this book succeeds in giving the reader engaging and informative biographies, while at the same time encouraging you to live and think like them. The book is written in an easy, conversational style that gives the reader the feeling that he/she is having a delightful talk with the writer about the world's greatest thinkers. Many times I have attempted to read up on geniuses like Plato, Darwin, and Ghandi with the intent of modeling my life after their examples, but I couldn't find the time to finish the marathon-length biographies I came across; "Discover Your Genius" is exactly what I was looking for--it gave me vast amounts of interesting information on each of the 10 geniuses and immediately showed me what I can do to improve myself with their examples. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has ever wondered what a genius is like and how you can enrich your life everyday by emulating them.
Rating:
Summary: Discover Your Genius by Gelb
Review: The author discusses various aspects of intelligence utilizing
the behavioral dimensions of historical personalities. For instance, Plato spoke of wisdom in a universalist context.
Brunelleschi demonstrated how to expand the human perspective
to encompass more possibilities. Einstein unleashed the imagination using mathematics and theoretical physics. Copernicus
showed how the revolution of the time could become global in nature. A good technique is to keep the pen moving so that
a stream of consciousness can be documented before any of its
contents are lost. The work is a solid value for students of
the intellect, theoretical sciences and philosophers.
Rating: 
Summary: These 10 are good. But, not as good as Leonardo
Review: This book seems like a sequel of How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci. And, this other book is superior to this one. Michael Gelb did a more cohesive and detailed job of fleshing out the cognitive faculties of the mind by studying Leonardo, than he did by studying this Dream Team. Occasionally, the exercises appear a bit repetitive, boring, and uninspiring. If I had not read this other book, I would have said that this book is great. Instead, it is very good. Michael Gelb touches on the same subjects, concepts, and exercises as in 'Leonardo.'
Rating:
Summary: More than just a great idea...10 Greats who just did it.
Review: This was a fun and entertaining book. Focused on innovation and how to unleash your abilities to be creative, this book provides insight into 10 Famous people that dramatically influenced the world with their ideas and actions. I will immediately say that I naturally enjoy learning from history, particularly from the people that influence history. To understand why historical figures acted in difficult times, how they adapted, what aspects of their upbringing formed their thinking and how they influenced others to accept their thinking has always intrigued my mind. The stories will not give you a full life biography on each person...just a synopsis of who the person is, what they did that was so revolutionary and how you can apply their actions to being innovative. From Plato, Brunelleschi, Columbus, Copernicus, Elizabeth I, Shakespeare, Jefferson and Darwin to Gandhi and Einstein...each will challenge you to reflect on your own gifts and how you might see things differently. I especially liked how the author provided with each story sections for personal reflection and excercises that allow you to share thoughts with others. Even before I finished the book, I was already enjoying the discussions with my kids about their views on the subjects and quizzing their minds about how they would have handled the situations these great people were a part of. I highly recommend this book, especially to those that are involved with consulting or facilitating others through innovation or creative expression in business.
Rating:
Summary: Being The Best That We Can Be!
Review: Tonight, on television, Tonya Harding is fighting Paula Jones.I won't be watching. Instead, I'll be re-reading my favorite parts of this extraordinary, uplifting book. In a world that tries to dumb us down with a never ending stream of lowest common demoninator nonsense, Gelb's book stand out like a Perfect Lotus in a muddy pond.The valuable lessons in history, art, politics, psychology, architecture, philosophy, literature, science, and music are more than just academic, they're brought home in a highly personal and engaging manner. I've also been listening to Gelb's "Discover Your Genius" music cd. as I read. Reading about Thomas Jefferson while listening to the "Jefferson" selection on the cd (Beethoven's ninth) on the night that the lights came up from Ground Zero, gave me a sense of appreciation for his "genius quality". "Celebrating Freedom in the Pursuit of Happiness"-- that, I won't forget.
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