A friend of mine lent A Million Miles in a Thousand Years to me a few weeks ago,
Regardless, I take book recommendations from good friends seriously, so I cracked into the book. And for some reason, I was hooked. It's not a book that I would picture myself enjoying, but I sailed through easily over a weekend.
It's an enjoyable read if only for the prose, but I took a few awesome lessons out that serve as a new lens (or mental model) for how I look at the world.
What Is The Main Point Of This Book?
Donald Miller is a writer, a storyteller. His biggest point in the entire book is that too many of us aren't living good stories. If we were characters in our own book, most of us wouldn't even care to read to the end of it (to say nothing of others wanting to read our stories). He believes that we all need to figure out how to live better stories, and relates his journey of how he came to do exactly that.
What Does This Book Share That Similar Books Do Not?
All of the lessons are framed through Miller's own life, a midlife crisis-
Who Should Read This Book?
If you've ever dealt with depression, felt stagnant, or wondered why some people seem to live better stories than others, this book is for you. Miller is that exact person and overcomes every challenge in his own way, which is very illustrative for others (myself included).
Who Should NOT Read This Book?
If you're already living an epic and interesting life, where you go after what you want and throw yourself into stories and memories with reckless abandon, this book isn't for you. If you don't want to read about someone who struggled with depression and is quite religious, this book also isn't for you.
Note: I'm not religious, but I didn't find his religious language too bothersome
What Skills Will This Book Help You Develop?
The book doesn't help you develop skills per se, but through the framework of
What Part Of The Book Was Most Illustrative Or Memorable?
Miller's realization that characters do not cho0se to advance or change, that the must be forced into change was insightful. He did this in his own life by committing to an active hiking journey to Peru while out of shape simply because he thought a woman was hot. It was the stakes he needed to commit to living a different story in his life.
If You Only Have 10 Minutes, Which Part Should You Read?
There are a few great stories about biking across America and committing to Machu Picchu (because a girl wanted to go) that were fun reads.