Book Review: Gunn's Golden Rules

Gunn's Golden Rules: Life's Little Lessons for Making it Work by Tim Gunn

What a great book! Read it!

5 stars

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Oh, that's not enough of a recommendation? OK. Here's why.

It's sensible.
It's down to earth.
It's about treating yourself and others with respect.
It's funny.
It's serious.
It's light.
It's deep.
It's readable.
It's honest.
It's wise.
It's quotable.

There are some gossipy stories about well-known people that illustrate the points he's making. Those stories are getting the press in book reviews. But that didn't hold the charm for me. Tim's way with words and dignity in the telling are what drew me in.

Here are some quotable gems:

• Speaking of a hideous white elephant gift: "It's ambitiously bad."
  
• "Why would you want to derail people who have a good impulse?"
• "There should be a lot more thank-yous."
• "There are a lot of people with whom I interact because I have to; that doesn't man I want to eat cake with them."
• "If someone doesn't ask, you don't have a moral obligation to say every thought that pops into your head."
• "Niceness can at times feel a little bit thankless."
  
• "There is absolutely never any reason to be a fire-breathing dragon."
• "Shorter is better. Always."

On that note, I end this review.

(READ THIS BOOK!)


p.s. This is the first book I read on my Kindle. I'm falling in love with my electronic book! As a bibliophile, I wasn't sure I'd like it. Where are the covers, the pages, the texture, the color images, the smell that are a big part of the book-reading experience? True. Those are missing. But there is an ease in reading that makes this a pure pleasure. I found myself picking up my Kindle far more often than my paper volumes. I don't keep dropping my bookmarks! My favorite feature is being able to make notes and marks "in the margins" and then being able to easily pull up your favorite bits. And the entire book is search-able ... without relying on an index! I'm making a vow that of every two books I read, one will be a paper version from my vast library of unread tomes. The other will be on my Kindle!