The Last Lecture
 | Average Customer Rating: Recommend "We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand." --Randy Pausch A lot of professors give talks titled "The Last Lecture." Professors are asked to consider their demise and to ruminate on what matters most to them. And while they speak, audiences can't help but mull the same question: What wisdom would we impart to the world if we knew it was our last chance? If we had to vanish tomorrow,… Product details and pricing info |
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496 Customer Reviews Posted
- this book should be mandatory for everyone's 12th birthday
- I wish I had been given or had at least read this book when I was young.I think it should be required reading for everyone.I feel blessed to have read it.
- 2008-08-20, 0 of 0 people found this review helpful, Rated:
- This book changed my life
- I don't read - I just don't have the time. I read this book and was so deeply moved by the way Randy lived his life, loved his wife and his children. Also, his dreams, he loved them too. This book was well written and made me want to read and read until the end. I highly recommend this book.
- 2008-08-19, 0 of 0 people found this review helpful, Rated:
- The Refreshing Insight Needed
- While I appreciate the reviews of those who found this book to not be of stellar quality, I would like to offer another side to the coin. The book is "simple and sweet" and may not offer much in terms of the ultimate enlightenment, but maybe that is not what I believe the book was intended to be.
The book speaks to many for the purpose that it brings up all the nostalgia and experiences that we either had or longed for in our lives. At times it does seep with Hollywood syrupiness, but it is written for a variety of people to be able to understand and relate to. Randy was writing a book for his family and friends (and those of us lucky enough to have read the book or listened to the lecture).
There is a reason Hollywood syrupiness exists and that is because it reminds of us all the wonderful things there is in life (from the seemingly mundane interactions with friends and family members to the "quirky" mishaps that occur as you are being whisked away from your wedding in a hot air balloon).
I currently am experiencing what has been coined a "quarter-life" crisis and this book put a lot into perspective for me. My summer has been spent with a more focused reflection upon where I have been and where I would like to go in my life. It made me remember those "childish" daydreams and wishes. My curiosity has not been zapped from me...as I am a science teacher and thrive on questioning and seeking (which may be another reason I found Randy's book well worth reading). I just lost my way in a very rapidly changing world that often gets bogged down with the desires of materialism and status.
My thoughts are that I enjoyed this book because it was able to verbalize the many thoughts that have been swimming through my mind the past year and helped me regain focus on what is near and dear to my heart. - 2008-08-19, 0 of 0 people found this review helpful, Rated:
- The Last Lecture
- This is by far one of the best!!! Each chapter is a "life-lesson". What an incredible young man---I hated for the lecture to end also. We can all take something from this book. Thank you!
- 2008-08-18, 1 of 1 people found this review helpful, Rated:
- We Saw a Shooting Star
- On July 25, 2008 Randy Pausch passed away. Professor Pausch wrote his book to share some of his life with us. He wrote the book to share some of his outlook and advice with us. He didn't focus on his impending death. That probably would have been of no service to him, his family, nor us. This book is based upon his now famous "Last Lecture".
Why did Prof. Pausch's lecture explode onto the national scene and spawn a book? The simple answer is because the American people wanted to embrace what an accomplished, intelligent, responsible, (and other respectful adjectives) family man has to say about life when he can "tell it like it is" free of an agenda. While I currently do not watch episodic television, I remember watching family shows that featured a functional and wisdom imbued father.
Father Knows Best, My Three Sons, The Brady Bunch, Eight is Enough, Life Goes On, and Seventh Heaven are such shows (well, they weren't always the most exciting shows). While Married With Children, Malcolm in the Middle, and According to Jim are funny shows, the father characters represent buffoons played for laughs and devoid of wisdom. Is it wrong to suggest that we just might tend to look for a benevolent father figure now and then? Yes, some of us are rebels just too smart to listen to dear old Pops. Grow up, and listen to your maturity elders, I say. It doesn't hurt to hear what a man of Prof. Pausch's character and intelligence has to say.
In my belief, it is the mother who tends to tell her children, "I love you". It is the father who likely should say, "Buck up, and pay attention". Pursue your interests, and work to develop your skills in both your job and hobbies. Then with luck, your dreams will find you. If this sounds familiar, I paraphrased The Last Lecture's last chapter. - 2008-08-18, 1 of 1 people found this review helpful, Rated:
