Great Thinkers: Simple tools from sixty great thinkers to improve your life today. (The School of Life Library)

So grateful to keep company with the superb minds of history. So much wisdom there for us if we so put the effort.

For years, I have been delving into culture, science, philosophy, history and bit of The School of Life; so I bought this book. I had before read extensively about many of the thinkers mentioned, and yet this book still offered unique instruction and entertainment. The fluid selection of themes, people, and ideas seem aimed to inspire the reader by suggesting, with tools and examples, an active engagement with oneself and the world; so it serves more for orienting oneself than piecemeal reference. I imagine this will be especially good for people who did not have time for eclectic self-exposure and for those with a practical ability to profoundly act. And, although there is definitely room for a new edition/s, I am reminded why some books should be reread.

Great book summarizing the ideas of many Great thinkers... however, the book could have gone into a little more depth into the thoughts of the list of great philosophers... perfect for an introduction to the great philosophers throughout history, and from there you can read their actual work... I gave it 4 stars because I would have liked to see Jesus Christ included... not so much on His divinity, but at least on the philosophy of Christ, and perhaps Saint Paul... whether you are a believer in Christ's divinity or not, there is a lot of great philosophical points that could be applied to us today... after all He was the most loving, the most forgiving, etc... "the Sabbath was created for man not the man for the Sabbath" is a great philosophical point for example... "those of you without sin cast the first stone" etc...

Seldom have I come across a more useful book. Drawing upon the authors vast knowledge of the key ideas behind philosophers, psychologists, sociologists, artists, architects and writers, he skillfully maps them to a usable framework. This level of practicality is rare in books relating to such subjects, and I applaud both the thinking behind the project, and its flawless execution. I recommend to everyone as it is both immensely helpful as a stand-alone text, and an excellent backbone to a very interesting libabry indeed.

Another fine and succulent read by the crew, I can hear Alain’s voice and vocabulary weave into my mental stocks and soothing and exciting the possibilities of behind, below, upwards and to the front. A great read for those interested in the minds that changed the human condition.

Yes, it's not as comprehensive as taking an entire semester discussing a single Philosopher's works but it is perhaps one of the better attempts at making the goal of philosophy and philosophers (wisdom) digestible for the masses.Also,the print quality is great!

I really enjoyed this book for its breath and subjects and also for the biographies and context of the times when they were written and their relation to our current times. Thank you.

I liked that the author simplified the thoughts of his great thinkers and did so in many cases in four pages or so. I don’t understand why many famous thinkers were left out for a number of less famous thinkers. Also, why SO many thinkers who bash capitalism, but almost no supporters. And what is with the “In the most destructive and polluting country mankind has ever known.” Referring to the US. I call BS. England in its day polluted so much the moths changed color. China today pollutes on an absolute basis more than the US. And destructive? How one sided. The benefits the US more than offset the “destructive”.Still, the descriptions that are short and too the point allow me to give 4 stars. The left leaning US bashing ticked me off.