Rating: 
Summary: Random book!
Review: I must say that I really haven't ever read a book this random... In short, it is a journal of Fulghum's thoughts--on everything from a deaf boy raking the leaves in his backyard, to watching a man setting up a Valentine's display in his store window.The one thing I didn't like about the book was that it didn't focus so much on kindergarten, which was the reason I bought it. Despite that, it was a warm, light-hearted book to read. Fulghum may be a little "random," but his thoughts are refressing. Overall, a fun book.
Rating:
Summary: Uncommon Thoughts .... The Wisdom Behind It All...
Review: I picked up this book in a bookstore one day not expecting much. I read it a little over a year ago, when I was in 7th grade. The thing about the collection of little "stories" that grabbed me was the terribly interesting point of view. This book is not for the weak-minded. There are morals and points behind the analogies. It focuses on people in general, and what there really is to life. This author has a great supply of wisdom, and while I don't agree with everything written, I greatly respect his "advice". I'd rather give it 4 1/2 stars.
Rating: 
Summary: Delightful and truly simple
Review: I read this book and I found it truly wonderful for its simple day to day thoughts. Its simplicity is delightful and inspiring. Shouldn't we all think a little bit more about what truly matters in our daily life?. All people should find time to read this book and lighten her/his day! Enjoy yourselves!
Rating:
Summary: Well I liked it!
Review: I really enjoyed the book. It made me look at diffrent aspects of life in ways I never would have thought to. I recomend this book to anyone who wants an uplifting, realistic look on life!
Rating: 
Summary: Simple-minded, boring stuff
Review: I remember exactly where I threw this book into the trash. It was in a chapter where Fulghum was wondering where all our "childhood potential" had gone. That is to say, kindergartners (allegedly) all say they can dance AND sing AND paint AND do anything at all. But when you talk with people of college age, you suddenly discover that they have chosen specialties, and are no longer acting as if they had "unlimited potential" in everything. Fulghum, bathetically, weeps over this enormous loss (?) and wonders what can be wrong with the world which so limits our unlimited potential. (Shades of the lunatic Rousseau!) As it happened, I was reading William James at the time, and William James produced an excellent explanation of the development which Fulghum was complaining about. To paraphrase: every man would like to be a millionaire, and a great lover, and a saint, and a famous warrior, and a philanthropist, and a star athlete, and a world-famous gourmet. BUT, once you start looking at things seriously, you obviously have to choose, because these roles cannot all fit together in one human being. The philanthropist would be at war with the millionaire, and the saint would conflict with the warrior, and the gourmet would conflict with the athlete. So we all concentrate on finding our strong points and developing them. People who are musically gifted will study music intensely, while mathematicians will pursue math. As James said, "I myself am a psychologist. I don't mind a bit if you can beat me in Ancient Greek, because I no longer 'carry that line,' as a shopkeeper would say. But, if you say that you are better than me at psychology, my attention is immediately engaged, because my intent is to be the best psychologist in the world." This is the normal pattern of child and adolescent development. That Fulghum could be ignorant of such an obvious thing truly does make one think that he stopped learning in kindergarten. And some people think that education is a life-long process! :-0 This book is poppycock. Not recommended at all.
Rating:
Summary: Simple-minded, boring stuff
Review: I remember exactly where I threw this book into the trash. It was in a chapter where Fulghum was wondering where all our "childhood potential" had gone. That is to say, kindergartners (allegedly) all say they can dance AND sing AND paint AND do anything at all. But when you talk with people of college age, you suddenly discover that they have chosen specialties, and are no longer acting as if they had "unlimited potential" in everything. Fulghum, bathetically, weeps over this enormous loss (?) and wonders what can be wrong with the world which so limits our unlimited potential. (Shades of the lunatic Rousseau!) As it happened, I was reading William James at the time, and William James produced an excellent explanation of the development which Fulghum was complaining about. To paraphrase: every man would like to be a millionaire, and a great lover, and a saint, and a famous warrior, and a philanthropist, and a star athlete, and a world-famous gourmet. BUT, once you start looking at things seriously, you obviously have to choose, because these roles cannot all fit together in one human being. The philanthropist would be at war with the millionaire, and the saint would conflict with the warrior, and the gourmet would conflict with the athlete. So we all concentrate on finding our strong points and developing them. People who are musically gifted will study music intensely, while mathematicians will pursue math. As James said, "I myself am a psychologist. I don't mind a bit if you can beat me in Ancient Greek, because I no longer 'carry that line,' as a shopkeeper would say. But, if you say that you are better than me at psychology, my attention is immediately engaged, because my intent is to be the best psychologist in the world." This is the normal pattern of child and adolescent development. That Fulghum could be ignorant of such an obvious thing truly does make one think that he stopped learning in kindergarten. And some people think that education is a life-long process! :-0 This book is poppycock. Not recommended at all.
Rating:
Summary: Wisdom is Found Everywhere
Review: I remember picking this book up in the 6th grade and never putting it down for a year. The year between my picking it up and putting down I read it, reread it, rereread it, read bits here and there, quoted from it, thought it was my Bible and then thought better... You get the idea. I was enchanted by this book. Typically, I find people who are confronted with things like this, which can be very corny but very wise at times, are either totally absorbed or revolted. It doesn't surprise me at all that average customer reviews for this book are either one star or five stars with few ratings in between. But you should be aware of this book's content before you make up your mind. The book consists of anecdotes told from the perspective of Robert Fulghum, who has been a salesman and a Unitarian minster among other things. His perspective can get very mushy at times, such as when he talks about how in fall Nature gives him an Oriental carpet in his backyard. And he can be very profound - like when he sees a kid hiding from his friends in a game of "Hide and Seek" in a place where no one will ever look. He compares this "go out a winner" attitude of the kid, whose friends almost give up looking for him, to the attitude a man with cancer had when he elected not to tell anyone close to him about his terminal illness. It's difficult for me to describe everything found in this book. Perhaps the best summary is given by the title. If you're looking for something different to read, and aren't afraid to examine a cornier - but infinitely more profound - way of looking at the world, then you must read this book.
Rating:
Summary: Something For Everyone To Relate To
Review: I thought this book was excellent. It has simple thoughts about some of the most complex and seemingly simple things in life. I am reading this book for the FOURTH time and it still makes me laugh or re-evaluate my thinking. I reccomend this book to anyone, especially those who want a quick break from rational thinking.
Rating:
Summary: All I Really Need To Know I Learned From This Book
Review: I would recommend this book to anyone. The basic principle of the book is, everything you need to know about life, and how to live successfully stem from the basics that we all learned in kindergarten. Often, in many books there is a boring spot. Either the reader gets tired of waiting for the characters to interact with each other, or the plot isn't moving along, etc. With All I Really Need To Know I Learned in Kindergarten, this is never the problem. Since each story is very short, if you don't like the characters in a story, it will be over shortly. The stories in the beginning of the book were the most meaningful, while at the end, the stories were incredibly good. In the middle of the book, the stories weren't as good, and the theme of Christmas was in about ten different stories. Since there are only about 60 stories, you can image how this got redundant. Other than these, I could personally relate to the essays and I think that anyone else would be able to also.
Rating:
Summary: Small Thoughts on Big Ideas
Review: I would recommend this book to anyone. The basic principle of the book is, everything you need to know about life, and how to live successfully stem from the basics that we all learned in kindergarten. Often, in many books there is a boring spot. Either the reader gets tired of waiting for the characters to interact with each other, or the plot isn't moving along, etc. With All I Really Need To Know I Learned in Kindergarten, this is never the problem. Since each story is very short, if you don't like the characters in a story, it will be over shortly. The stories in the beginning of the book were the most meaningful, while at the end, the stories were incredibly good. In the middle of the book, the stories weren't as good, and the theme of Christmas was in about ten different stories. Since there are only about 60 stories, you can image how this got redundant. Other than these, I could personally relate to the essays and I think that anyone else would be able to also.
| 
