Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself by Alan Alda Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself
Book Review: Stellar, Entertaining & Enlightening! So much more than you expect!!!!!!!!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
"Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself" is really an invitation to see how Alda's mind works; his philosophical outlook, what excites him, what he values, etc. His advice to his daughter, Eve, about the importance of making distinctions because "A peach is not its fuzz, a toad is not its warts, a person is not his or her crankiness" is advice from which we could all learn and grow. As to the one reviewer here who gave a negative review, from reading said review, it is obvious that this person got caught up in the minutia of the fuzz and failed to see this book for what it is: an exquisitely ripened peach.
In an excerpt from Alan Alda's commencement address at Eve's graduation, he talked about the need for people to question their "assumptions" because our assumptions are our windows through which we view the world...he also talked about the happiness found in existentialism because life is what you make of it. For those of you who have read the books of Barry Neil Kaufman, you will likely find a delightful synergy of outlook.
Most of one chapter is about Alda's fascination with Richard Feynman....the chapter is so intriguing that the next book I plan to read is about Richard Feynman. In the this book, you learn about Alan, but also about things that you didn't expect, like when Alan went in search of a greater understanding of Thomas Jefferson by talking to scientists in China. He reaches into the dark and pulls out something magnificent that nobody else would have found.
"Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself" starts you thinking about what you value and what excites you. As much as I loved "Never Have Your Dog Stuffed", I LOVE this new book even more! This book is clearly from Alan Alda's heart and it goes straight to the reader's heart...indeed, you may find your heart is much fuller; I did...I took the "random walk" and discovered an amazing peach! So, my advice to people considering reading this book is simply take a bite, embrace the richness of the flavor and delicious sensation as its juice spills in you and washes over you!
ENJOY!!!!!!!!!
Book Review: Interesting and Thought-Provoking
Summary: 5 Stars
Well, frankly, I hardly know where to begin. I am not accustomed to reading books by celebrities in the entertainment industry. I was asked if I was interested in reading and reviewing Alan Alda's newest book and I said "OK," maybe just out of a need for something "lighter" for a change, after reading and reviewing so many "serious" books by philosophers, historians, political pundits, and others who write "serious" books. Besides, I always admired Alda as an actor on TV and in films. So, I have read "Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself" and was pleasantly surprised that I actually enjoyed the book, even though I knew in advance that Mr. Alda and I often differ widely regarding our respective political and social positions on many issues of the day. I was already aware (thanks to the maniacal news media, of course) that the star of one of my favorite TV shows way back when -- "M*A*S*H" -- was considered a "modern" liberal and I, of course, being a "classical" liberal, had to adjust my thinking and reset my ideological thermometer in the interest of fair play and a fair review.
No problem, really. Regardless of being separated somewhat on the sociopolitical spectrum, I found many of Alda's views to be interesting and thought-provoking. Let's give him the credit he is due; he really does have some serious things to say about important things. My impression is that he sincerely thinks through his positions on social and political matters and forms his opinions after critically examining the facts he analyzes. This does not mean his views are correct or the best obtainable, but it does mean he is not indulging in "mere" opinion for opinion's sake (contrary to some recent Hollywood types!). I think it would be delightful to sit down with him and converse about the issues he talks about in his book. I suspect, and I base this purely on the attitude he presents which comes through a reading of his book, that it would be a most respectful discussion. I do not detect a "mean" bone in his body (or mind) and, considering that today the media are so filled with crass talk and personal attacks, it would be refreshing to discourse with and disagree with someone in a courteous environment.
That being said, this is not really an autobiography or memoir in any strict sense; it is, for the most part, a compilation of speeches and talks he has given in various venues, ranging from academic institutions to scholarly organizations, along with much commentary and personal anecdotes in between. The book is, in a very genuine way, a celebration of life as Alda sees it after recovering from a near fatal experience with an intestinal obstruction while traveling in Chile -- facing death on the top of a mountain no less! Emergency surgery took care of that problem, but then the questions begin. What is of real value? What has real meaning? What is a life well lived? And so on and on. Now, I can relate to these questions and I think I can understand what he went through to some extent. Only two years separate us in age (he is, however, older than I am!). We are both at that point in life where these sorts of questions somehow magically appear, particularly after a personal traumatic event (his intestinal obstruction, my heart attacks).
What does matter, and I think this comes through in his book quite clearly, is to maintain a sense of balance and, maybe even more importantly, a sense of humor. Alan Alda is funny; no doubt about that. I think I am often funny, too (although I'll never make the Comedy Club!). He exhibits what I call a "lighthearted" persona while not denigrating the seriousness of most of the issues he comments upon. I think I generally have that same disposition. It is always worthwhile to read what someone else, especially one who has spent threescore and ten years on this sometimes frustrating planet of ours, has to say, particularly when that someone has truly thought deeply about the matters that, well, matter most: values, integrity, truth, meaning, purpose, ethics, family, friends, and so on.
"Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself" was mainly a pleasant diversion for me. It was probably a well-needed vacation from my usual literary fare. I had watched Alan Alda as an accomplished actor on both the small screen and large screen for many years. While reading his book, I got to know Alan Alda the person, and friend, and father, and just plain nice human being. If he really is, as some of his more vocal critics have charged, simply a "na?ve Hollywood liberal," then he is my sort of na?ve Hollywood liberal, despite our political differences. I don't have to agree with someone to respect them, to love them, to care about them, or be their friend. In fact, some of the worst people I have dealt with are those who mostly agree with me.
If you are into books by celebrities, you'll most likely love this book. If not, it's a toss-up. All I can say is that I did enjoy the book even though it's not in one of my usual literary categories of interest. Some of this may be due to the fact that I watched Alan Alda for so many years and enjoyed his performance as "Hawkeye" on that now-classic television series, recently named one of the top 100 TV shows of all time by "Time" magazine. Maybe I was already primed to enjoy Alda's book just because I was a fan of his. I don't know and it really doesn't matter. It's good leisure reading and thought-provoking, too. Therefore, I am recommending it to all readers, even those I know will find fault with it. I have a feeling that Alan Alda will survive their objections to his political and social views.
Book Review: Needs an editor.
Summary: 2 Stars
This book seems like a collection of discarded paragraphs. Sure, his speech patterns recall his acting persona, but the book is disappointing. Great topic, poor writing. In one account, a script he wrote is edited, he asks the editor, "what are the "O's" written the margin?" The editor said, "They stand for omit". I guess the writer did not have a good editor for this book, too bad.
Book Review: Great book
Summary: 5 Stars
I've enjoyed reading about Alan Alda's life. I didn't realize how enlightening and funny he is, much like his Hawkeye character.Book Review: Well worth reading, not quite up to Never Have Your Dog Stuffed
Summary: 5 Stars
Alan Alda is an extraordinarily engaging writer, with a direct, smart, deceptively "effortless" style that reminds me of Isaac Asimov. I greatly enjoyed this book, although not quite as much as his first memoir, for the technical writing reason I describe below. I can't wait for the next one!
One caution: do not be confused by the odd Publishers Weekly review which suggests he has abandoned his lifelong political and personal philosophy. ("While poking good-natured fun at some of his earlier rhetoric (the ravings of a na?ve Hollywood liberal)..."). That simply does not describe this book. I was concerned by the PW comment prior to reading the book, yet I didn't see a single sentence that suggests Alda thinks his past views were naive "ravings" (?). He notes that some protests in which he participated in the 1960s had no impact, but that's a comment on tactics, not political values.
The slight dissatisfaction I had with this book was, I think, an inevitable outcome of Alda's idea of weaving in excerpts from (mostly very good) speeches he's given -- which is, of course, the central framing conceit for this book. It's simply in the nature of things that excerpted pieces are never quite as appealing as new material. The old material, however good, always reads as "seconds." And there's just a bit of let-down each time as you have to shift gears from the natural flow of the book to the different rhythm of the excerpt, then back again.
Fortunately, the excerpts woven into this narrative are jumping-off points and comprise a relatively small percent of the words, so this is a minor dissatisfaction and not a major one. And, despite the inherent drawbacks of this approach, Alda does a superb job trying to weave in these excerpts, explaining his thinking, creative process, and anxiety in writing the speeches in a fascinating "behind the scenes" way. He is such a skilled, hard-working writer that he actually pulls this off most, but not all, of the time.
The less successful, more generic speech excerpts (for me) are near the beginning of the book. They get better as the book proceeds, perhaps because he has gotten better over time at writing attention-getting, highly unusual, thoughtful speeches.
Perhaps Alda felt he had "already written" his autobiography and had to do something really different to justify a second book. While that may seem logical, there's really no rule that an author can only write one memoir. The notion of writing a second (or even a third or fourth) autobiography never stopped Frederick Douglass, Isaac Asimov, David Niven, Laurence Olivier, or Leonard Nimoy, to name a few "multi-memoirist" authors I've enjoyed.
To go back where I started, I loved Alda's first book, loved this one almost as much, and eagerly await his next. These are lasting contributions to any home bookshelf.