Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #94159 in Books
• Published on: 2003-10-06
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Oliver Sacks
Brilliantly written, devastatingly honest, often very funny, and tells a personal story as fascinating as the philosophical one. Engrossing

Stephen Pinker
McGinn is an ingenious philosopher who thinks like a laser and writes like a dream

New Statesman
A superb intellectual autobiography ... one of the best introductions to contemporary Anglo-American philosophy

Customer Reviews

Literary Genius
Colin McGinn is a master at getting his point across whether you’re philosophically enlightened or not. McGinn has a gift for both clarity of thought and expressing these thoughts.

I often find philosophy books disorientating but I just couldn't put this book down. This book is a philosophical autobiography, traversing his voyage through philosophy and how he arrived at his own philosophical opinions, he often sidesteps away from conceptual thought and lightens the mood with witty anecdotes and I think he strikes a healthy balance. I found this a comforting, light relief from the occasionally weighty philosophical concept. He knows when to push an idea, how to push it, how much to push it, and just as your on the verge of being swamped under overwhelming weight of it all.....he backs off and fills you in on some of his youthful undertakings. Literary Genius! a truly unique book.

A 'must read' for anybody approaching philosophy for the first time or anybody willing to test the water of philosophy.

If like me you find philosophy enthralling and inpirational but all too often get bogged down by heavy philosophical texts, then this is the book for you.

A Magnificent incite to the World of Philosophy
I came across this book having read an article on him in a newspaper. I bought it, and have never been so interested by a book. It is truly thought provoking.

I am a complete novice when it comes to philosophy. The joy of this book is that it takes you through many philosophical topics: the mind and the brain, linguistic philosophy and the existence of God, whilst not getting too heavy! The philosophical discussions are dispersed with light biographical recollections to easethe brain after a bit of serious thought.

I would recomend this book to anyone with even a minor interest in philosophy, regardless of their previous philosophical experience!

Entertaining the mind
Having previously never heard of Colin McGinn, I was extremely pleased to discover one of his books. I have never claimed to be a philosopher, in fact truth be told i’m a relative newcomer to the subject. So naturally I was keen to be introduced to the subject. The book proved to be both informative and interesting, and just as importantly was witty and gripping throughout. Taking the form of an autobiography as a reader we are introduced to the wonderful world of philosophy through the authors eyes, experiencing his journey of discovery as he did. I found this a great way to learn about some of the most important philosophical theories in recent history.
His ability to both introduce and explain the numerous theories was immensely effective. Too many academic writers these days can become obsessed with jargon and excessive detail. But not Colin McGinn! His style of writing is approachable, and a joy to read. I would recommend this to anyone after a real introduction to the subject.