Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

Another great flick through book by school of life. I enjoyed reading Philosophy in 40 Ideas very much.

This book gives a really good summary of several key ideas relating to philosophy, and some of the history behind these ideas. The writing is clear and easy to read and understand. What I love the most about this book are the accompanying photos - they are fantastic. This is a good starting point if you have an interest in learning more about philosophy.

It was an interesting read which compiled a lot of philosophy topics in bite-sized and digestible pieces. As someone new to the subject, I really found this nice to have and read. It only briefly touches on each subject however, but it does intrigue and compel you to search online to learn more. I think this is a great book to learn about some topics and ideas in philosophy, before diving head first into the field.

My thanks to NetGalley and The School of Life for an advanced copy of this book.

Philosophy in 40 Ideas: Lessons for life by The School of Life is a short, short primer on philosophy and Eastern religion. Each idea is about a page, with an accompaning photo, very informational, but that is all. A nice introduction for someone new to philosophy or maybe for a person who likes to learn one new thing everyday. Possibly a gift for a student at graduation. Informative, but not super educational, breezy for learning something new, but without the worry of being tested or writing a in-depth essay on.

I'm not sure how well this idea was executed. I liked the blurb and the idea. The execution could use some work. However, it would be useful for a primer to philosophy. There are so many students I come across who are deeply interested in philosophy. I was never one to lean toward the abstract. However, I think that there is a lot to offer by way of summarizing philosophers and their ideas down in order to provide a primer, not an oversimplification. I'm conflicted on my thoughts about this one.

Taking around an hour or two to read the book, this is a very short simple introduction to 40 philosophical ideas. Pitched somewhere between a dictionary and a meditation, I can imagine that some readers will find this book to be a helpful prompt for thoughts.

For example, Wabi Sabi as finding beauty in imperfection (Kindle 69%) and Kintsugi (68%) as the hope which repaired objects represent, are ideas which some readers may well find significant and meaningful.

Personally I didn’t like the book. I found myself taking issue with it from its very first sentence which proclaimed: ‘Philosophy is a deeply unpopular subject….’ (7%) Really? What is the authors evidence for that claim?

Then the introduction closed by telling us that ‘Philosophy is often done in universities by people with no interest in improving the world…’ (10%). Really? How does the author know the selfish motivations of the world’s professional philosophers ?

Unfortunately generalised opinion statements like that, undermined my reading experience. I also found the short section style frustrating in places. For example we are told that “Philosophy” is the love of wisdom (13%). Yes, but what is wisdom, and how is it supposed to differ from knowledge or understanding….? But the book just moved on without asking questions like that.

Initially I thought the book was going to avoid religious ideas, as its section on love gave a quick overview of the Greek ideas of Eros and Philia (18%). But then it had a section on the Christian idea of Original Sin (22%). That raised immediate questions why the Christian idea of “Agape” wasn’t included in the section of love? Overall the selection of materials just seemed a bit unbalanced and random in places.

The first half of the book was a plough through Western Philosophy from the Greeks to Sartre and the Existentialists. Then the second half of the book explored Chinese, Japanese and ‘Eastern’ ideas. It was good to see material from outside Europe, but it still seemed to be represented in the traditional European vision of an East-West model of Philosophy. Where were the sections dealing with Native American ideas, or Philosophical concepts from African or Arabic thought?

Overall I was disappointed with the book, but I can also see that it does contain some interesting ideas which will appeal to some readers.

These comments are honest opinions based on an Advanced Review Copy of the text.

I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This book was really disappointing because it merely repeats the work of others and offers no original thoughts. This book could be helpful to only individuals who have no prior knowledge on the topic. Disappointing.