Thank to NetGalley and Knopf Publishing for making a copy of this title available for an honest review.

As Seneca said, "It takes the whole of life to learn how to live." It's a pity so many of us give up so early. The general opinion of our society seems to be that learning is for the young and by the time we become adults, we should have reached competency. By the time we're adults, we shy away from anything we're not good at. We avoid doing anything that may embarrass us. We don't want to engage in any activity that doesn't show us in a good light. We agonize over failures. We fail to learn. Our mental and physical patterns becomes stagnant. We fail to grow. Our world becomes smaller. Personally, I need a bigger world. I need to get over this, "What if I can't do it?" mindset and start wondering if I can. I enjoyed Vanderbilt's attempts at surfing, singing, drawing, and chess, and the things he learned when humbling himself enough to be a beginner. He inspired me and I started brainstorming things I've always wanted to learn but felt I was too "mature" to experiment with. I wonder if there's anyone in my community that would teach an old lady blacksmithing?

A book about the joy and discomfort of embracing a new interest with just enough science and humor to nudge the reader to dive into their own something new.