Delusions of Grandeur

Loved the premise, but ultimately didn’t fall in love with the writing as much as I hoped to. Wishing the author best of luck with the release though!

There are people we all know who can see the world for what it really is. They are able to see past the surface and go to the essence of a matter. Joey Franklin is one such person.

Franklin's writing style is easy and conversational. He begins most of his essays with a personal story and then ties it into the larger point he's trying to make. This makes them all charming and easy to read.

I recommend this book.

**I received and voluntarily read an e-ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

It's always nice to look at things through someone else's eyes, which is basically what this book was for me.

The essays were nice, made me think a little deeper about things and helped me see a couple of connections that I hadn't seen before. Homelessness, racism, and more are all addressed in a manner that begins with a personal story then expands into the essay. As a white woman without children from a lower income area of the south, as expected, I didn't connect with the author and some of his points of view.

While addressing so many issues, one major current issue left untouched was the MeToo movement. As the author is a male with only boy children, it may never have crossed his mind to address such an issue, however, the lack of any essays even briefly touching on such a major issue is glaringly obvious.

Overall, I liked the idea of the book, but the execution fell flat for me.

“Delusions of Grandeur” is a compilation of 10 thought-provoking essays by Joey Franklin, an associate professor of English at BYU. In it, he addresses serious (and timely) cultural and political issues, such as classism, toxic masculinity, systemic racism, the “rage machine” of social media and much more. He also grapples with how to be a white, minivan-driving dad living in the suburbs—all while trying to be a good citizen. “Self-deception serves nicely as a defense mechanism against the fact that most of us have no idea what we’re doing.”

I very much appreciated Franklin’s easy-going writing style, his self-deprecating humor and his ability to “go there.” For instance, he brings up the uncomfortable topics that we’re all thinking about but no one wants to talk about, let alone publish in black and white text! He encourages us to engage in the hard, humbling work of understanding each other (and ourselves).

“Certainly I am as inclined as anyone to run away from uncomfortable truths, but for too long, delusional thinking has been killing us softly, one narcissistic fairy tale at a time. As I approach middle age, I find myself less enamored of convenient myths and more willing to accommodate those uncomfortable truths—especially if they carry the promise of a little clarity. And if there is a genre that can handle the pitch and yaw of discomfort, it’s the essay.”

I recommend this book for those who are on a similar journey of looking within and across the proverbial aisle.

Special thanks to the University of Nebraska Press, via NetGalley, for an electronic copy in exchange for my review.

While this book does touch on a lot of really important topics relevant now, unfortunately I just didn’t click with the writing style of the author. Ultimately, while personal perspectives are very important- I’m not sure this is the most appropriate or pressing voice to be hearing right now.