Author: Joshua Foer
Enjoyment Rating: 8/10
Referral: Eddie got this book for Christmas
Source: Hardback copy
Books I've read this year: 10
When people ask me what Eddie wants for his birthday or Christmas, I often pick books that I want to read too. Moonwalking with Einstein was one of those books. I didn't know all that much about it, other than it was written by the younger brother of the brilliant Jonathan Safran Foer, and it was getting lots and lots of buzz. People were comparing it to Freakonomics and Malcolm Gladwell's stuff, and I do love me some Malcolm Gladwell.
Foer does remind me of Malcolm Gladwell and a lighter version of the late David Foster Wallace, but instead of focusing on a bunch of experiences in short (or not so short) essays, Foer engages in a years-long experiment with gonzo journalism. He starts out researching memory and using mnemonics and visualization to improve memory, but takes that one step further, hires a memory coach, and eventually ends up as [SPOILER] Memory Champion of the US. The book is entertaining and smart, and Foer is self-deprecating and nerdy enough that we don't begrudge him his statue. I'm still thinking of Claudia Schiffer bathing in a tub of cottage cheese by the front door of my childhood home. Read the book, and that last sentence will make perfect sense to you.
1 comment:
oooh goody! an actual book that i'd like to read (ie: borrow)! i bet brad would like it, too.
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