The Real Work: On the Mystery of Mastery
- Downloads：1645
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2023-03-17 06:21:27
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Adam Gopnik
- ISBN：1324090758
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Louise Foerster
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Long fascinated by what it takes to master anything in life， I appreciated Adam Gopnik's deep dive into accomplishment and creation in THE REAL WORK。 While not as straightforward as might be best for the reader， the book represents a genuine grappling with meaning and connection， the network of a world created by all of us masters contributing what we have to make the whole。 Some of the chapters appealed more than others and some of the language felt convoluted as if a little further considerati Long fascinated by what it takes to master anything in life， I appreciated Adam Gopnik's deep dive into accomplishment and creation in THE REAL WORK。 While not as straightforward as might be best for the reader， the book represents a genuine grappling with meaning and connection， the network of a world created by all of us masters contributing what we have to make the whole。 Some of the chapters appealed more than others and some of the language felt convoluted as if a little further consideration would have resulted in a better-expressed message， ultimately I enjoyed spending time with Gopnik， figuring out what makes the world tick， how we learn and develop and master。 I received a copy of this book and these opinions are my own， unbiased thoughts。 。。。more
Kate
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I'm not sure I've ever read anything by Adam Gopnik that I DIDN'T like， and "The Real Work" doesn't buck that enviable trend。 What could have been a rather trite gimmick， a neophyte apprenticing himself to masters of various arts and metiers， becomes， in Gopnik's hands， an exercise in wonder。 The humility with which he approaches these endeavors is endearing， and the deep respect for the mastery he finds all around him， not just in his tutors but across the folds of society， is contagious。 Throu I'm not sure I've ever read anything by Adam Gopnik that I DIDN'T like， and "The Real Work" doesn't buck that enviable trend。 What could have been a rather trite gimmick， a neophyte apprenticing himself to masters of various arts and metiers， becomes， in Gopnik's hands， an exercise in wonder。 The humility with which he approaches these endeavors is endearing， and the deep respect for the mastery he finds all around him， not just in his tutors but across the folds of society， is contagious。 Throughout the arc of the book， the reader may start to see the world a bit differently， noticing the care and， yes， mastery， in the execution of some of the things we may take for granted every day， and appreciating for perhaps the first time how our lives are made more beautiful， more interesting， and even possible at it's most basic level through the carefully honed accomplishment of others。 At a juncture in our collective lives when felicity is in short supply， Gopnik's effortlessly gorgeous writing， his keen but sensitive perspicacity， and his unfaltering admiration for his subjects make "The Real Work" a tender jolt of joy。 。。。more
Peter Tillman
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Expected publication: March 14， 2023Mixed reviews of ARCs by people I don't know。 Gopnik's NYer essays are consistently good， and he has addressed this topic there。 So I'll be reading it， once the library gets a copy。 Expected publication: March 14， 2023Mixed reviews of ARCs by people I don't know。 Gopnik's NYer essays are consistently good， and he has addressed this topic there。 So I'll be reading it， once the library gets a copy。 。。。more
Christine Corrigan
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The Real Work: On the Mystery of Mastery by Adam Gopnik explores how we master a task， such as drawing， dancing or magic tricks。 Such tasks take many years of practice before mastery is achieved。 On the surface， the premise of this book sounded interesting， but the reading was something else altogether--slow， laborious， and at times nap-inducing。 Gopnik makes some interesting observations about learning and mastery， and his writing is quite good; however， this book lacked a spark， which is ironi The Real Work: On the Mystery of Mastery by Adam Gopnik explores how we master a task， such as drawing， dancing or magic tricks。 Such tasks take many years of practice before mastery is achieved。 On the surface， the premise of this book sounded interesting， but the reading was something else altogether--slow， laborious， and at times nap-inducing。 Gopnik makes some interesting observations about learning and mastery， and his writing is quite good; however， this book lacked a spark， which is ironic given its topic。I received a complimentary ARC from W。 Norton & Company and all opinions expressed are my own。 Publication in March 2023。 。。。more
Debra Pants
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I read this ARC I won on Goodreads and felt a sense of obligation to finish the book， or I wouldn't have。 I was bored and sometimes felt as though I were reading a stream of consciousness。 Whatever I was supposed to take away from this， I did not。 There were a few good nuggets mixed in here and there， but it felt like a chore to finish this book。 I read this ARC I won on Goodreads and felt a sense of obligation to finish the book， or I wouldn't have。 I was bored and sometimes felt as though I were reading a stream of consciousness。 Whatever I was supposed to take away from this， I did not。 There were a few good nuggets mixed in here and there， but it felt like a chore to finish this book。 。。。more
Ed Lee
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3 stars。It was somewhat a disappointment。 I usually try to find something good in any book I read， even if I wasn’t impressed overall。 I tried reading it in the morning， I tried reading it at night， during the day， on my days off， and the result was always the same - I was nodding off。 So， it may be a good investment if you have trouble falling asleep， otherwise I see no point reading this。 The author knows how to write， he knows how to structure sentences， he likes fancy words， he couldn’t keep 3 stars。It was somewhat a disappointment。 I usually try to find something good in any book I read， even if I wasn’t impressed overall。 I tried reading it in the morning， I tried reading it at night， during the day， on my days off， and the result was always the same - I was nodding off。 So， it may be a good investment if you have trouble falling asleep， otherwise I see no point reading this。 The author knows how to write， he knows how to structure sentences， he likes fancy words， he couldn’t keep me interested at all。 He’s a master。 Technically， it should have been near perfect。 But it lacks magic。 Some books you read to learn something， and you may dislike the style， or writer’s voice， or even disagree with their attitude， but you learn something。 Other books you read to get another perspective， to see the familiar through someone else’s story， you don’t gain any factual knowledge， but you enjoy the experience， you marvel at how their mind works， you live through it， you feel。 Well， that was neither。 This is a book written was the sole purpose of writing a book。 It doesn’t teach anything， it doesn’t move you， it doesn’t entertain you。 You just read it as a grounded ten-year-old， forcing your mind， dragging your eyes to the next line of text。 A few minutes in I already knew I wasn’t enjoying it。 But you don’t judge a book that quickly。 About halfway through I had a passing feeling it was getting better， but that didn’t last longer than three pages。 It has a couple witty observations， but that doesn’t make a good book。 If it was split in a number of essays， I’d probably enjoy some of them， but put together， it just didn’t work for me at all。 I loved the thought provoking observations about family。 Overall impression: a dull book with a few quirky， witty observations。 Not worth the effort it takes to plow through。 I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Jax
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This is a study of the nature of accomplishment， Gopnik will explain。 The doing， which begins by doubting。 And practice， which is the root of accomplishment。 And accomplishment， which is the mystery of mastery。 The mystery of accomplishment will unfold in a sequence of seven “Mysteries of Mastery” wherein he will become the apprentice and reflect on the nature of his work and many things beyond it。 From art to magic， sourdough to driving， the choices he makes are as mysterious as the experience This is a study of the nature of accomplishment， Gopnik will explain。 The doing， which begins by doubting。 And practice， which is the root of accomplishment。 And accomplishment， which is the mystery of mastery。 The mystery of accomplishment will unfold in a sequence of seven “Mysteries of Mastery” wherein he will become the apprentice and reflect on the nature of his work and many things beyond it。 From art to magic， sourdough to driving， the choices he makes are as mysterious as the experience of seeking mastery。 Therein lies the challenge of this book。 It is filled with insight and beauty that share space with magic and card tricks。 I could not reconcile trickery and slight of hand with the heights of language he reaches in other sections of the book， however magical mastery might seem。 。。。more
Deb （Readerbuzz） Nance
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How to rate The Real Work？ What classification do I give it？ Who is the target audience for this book？ Besides people who love Gopnik like me， I mean？Gopnik explores the idea of mastering a task。 He tries to learn how to do several types of work。 All of the types of work take many years of practice before mastery is achieved。 Gopnik works with a baker， an artist， a dancer， a boxer， and a driving instructor。 As always， Gopnik writes about his experiences masterfully （if you will）， combining a pic How to rate The Real Work？ What classification do I give it？ Who is the target audience for this book？ Besides people who love Gopnik like me， I mean？Gopnik explores the idea of mastering a task。 He tries to learn how to do several types of work。 All of the types of work take many years of practice before mastery is achieved。 Gopnik works with a baker， an artist， a dancer， a boxer， and a driving instructor。 As always， Gopnik writes about his experiences masterfully （if you will）， combining a picture of the actual work encounters with Gopnik's brilliant philosophical musings about the experiences。 。。。more
Ell
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Why is it some people aspire to mastery something rather than be mastered by something？ How is it some are drawn to expertise while others are satisfied with mediocrity？ What methods help the truly great achieve as they do？ These are some of the questions author XXX sets out to answer in his book， The Real Work: On the Mystery of Mastery。 The book is full of interesting stories and thought-provoking anecdotes。 It may just inspire you to better yourself in a small but profound way or you my just Why is it some people aspire to mastery something rather than be mastered by something？ How is it some are drawn to expertise while others are satisfied with mediocrity？ What methods help the truly great achieve as they do？ These are some of the questions author XXX sets out to answer in his book， The Real Work: On the Mystery of Mastery。 The book is full of interesting stories and thought-provoking anecdotes。 It may just inspire you to better yourself in a small but profound way or you my just enjoy being taken along on the journey of exploration。 Either way， it’s a book worth reading。 。。。more
tpg0
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As an AI language model， I don't have the ability to form a personal opinion， but I can provide you with some information about the book "The Real Work: On the Mystery of Mastery"。 Written by Gary Snyder， an American poet， environmentalist， and Zen Buddhist， "The Real Work" is a collection of essays on the nature of mastery， ranging from topics like art， Zen Buddhism， ecology， and Native American mythology。 The book attempts to uncover the spiritual and practical paths that lead to mastery in any field of work， and offers insights on how to cultivate a more meaningful and fulfilling life。 With its deep philosophical and ecological themes， "The Real Work" is recommended for readers who are looking for a thought-provoking and transformative read。 It is particularly relevant for those who are interested in Zen Buddhism， nature， and sustainable living。
tpg1
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As an AI language model， I cannot provide personal opinions， but I can provide information about the book 'The Real Work: On the Mystery of Mastery。' The book is written by American poet Gary Snyder and was published in 1980。 In this book， Snyder presents his ideas on the importance of craftsmanship and the mastery of skills， and how the pursuit of mastery is central to human fulfillment。 The book is a collection of essays that touch on a variety of subjects， including Zen Buddhism， literature， ecology， and human nature。 Overall， 'The Real Work' is considered an insightful and inspiring read for those interested in personal growth and the pursuit of excellence。
tpg2
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