Overall rating and opinion of "And Then I Met Margaret"

Use this forum to discuss the January 2018 Book of the Month, "And Then I Met Margaret" by Rob White
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Kassandra_Flamouri
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Latest Review: And Then I Met Margaret by Rob White

Re: Overall rating and opinion of "And Then I Met Margaret"

Post by Kassandra_Flamouri »

Are spoilers allowed in these forums? Overall, I definitely agree with those who said the tone came off as arrogant, but there's one particular episode in the book that really bothered me and I'm curious to see if other people felt the same way or if I'm reading too much into it or something.
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Post by Nelsy Mtsweni »

The book is full of inspiration, motivation, and optimism. I would definitely read the over and over again. I feel like one can attain a lot from reading the book. The book structure was well-defined, making it easy easy to read the book. I am recommending it to everyone who need motivations to move forward in life.
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Post by mnmueller »

I gave And Then I Met Margaret a 3 out of 4 stars. While most of the stories were entertaining in small doses, it did become more difficult to read as the stories became harder to relate to. Some of his experiences are not even things I would be interested in doing, which didn't help.

Mostly, Mr. White came across as someone who wanted to boast about how he has had the best experiences and what he's learned from them. That he tried to relate them to actions was the redeeming factor for the latter half of the book, because I think he honestly wants to motivate people to improve their own life and help others improve theirs.

For people who enjoy self-help books or people looking for tools to help them look at their own experiences in new ways, I would recommend this book. This book may also be helpful if you're looking for ways to promote positive change around you, since it gives some examples of how a small act on his part led to an improvement for someone else.
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Post by Cristina Chifane »

lavellan wrote: 01 Jan 2018, 14:09
AliceofX wrote: 01 Jan 2018, 05:15 I should probably start by saying that I've never been a fan of self-help type books. I don't really have much to compare this book to, but I'll probably stay away from this genre in the future. What I disliked most about the book was how arrogant the author came off. Maybe I'm just a huge cynic, but I don't believe our destiny is entirely in our hands. There are people who say, "What doesn't kill you make you stronger." To me, that just means you weren't hit hard enough. You could have easily been left cripled and broken, but you weren't. That brings me to the crux of the problem. Sure, the author, like all of us, worked hard to get what he has, but in the end he also had the luck to not be given a heavier burden than he could carry. But then to go on and preach that you can achieve anything if you just work hard ... The world doesn't work like that. The world isn't fair and just. In the end, all we can say is, "There but for the grace of God."

To be completely fair, it was a well-written book with interesting stories. The "myth I believed" at the start of every chapter always made me intrigued, and made me want to continue reading. But in the end I just couldn't get behind the overall moral of the book.
I agree as well. Toward the beginning of the book I was more interested as the stories seemed to be relatable to me, but as the story went on, he became a total narcissist. I enjoyed that he was willing to point out his flaws, but it seemed like he never really grew out of his self-centered ways. I disliked that the stories all followed the same formula where he encountered a problem, solved it, and then helped someone else. It became very repetitive after a while. It also is pretty easy to say that you can overcome anything when you’ve never encountered any true adversity in life. This book would be enjoyable to casual readers, but it wouldn’t be very helpful to people who have serious problems in their lives.
I have been reading your comments and they seem to sum up my own views too. I wish we could cope with life's problems by simply having a positive attitude, being always helpful, etc., but life is no fairy tale at all. Inspirational books in general do not inspire me at all. :)
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Post by Annogor »

I gave the book on my review a 3 out of 4 stars. It was well written and enjoyabe.
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Post by Insomniac07 »

And Then I met Margaret was highly entertaining and motivational read for me. I liked the writing style and the way each anecdote was formatted. It's a good book for people who doubt themselves and their abilities. But i can also see why others have complaints. It's not meant for those who have serious issues such as disabilities or health issues.
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Post by Melchi Asuma »

I am almost completing my review for this book. I imagine that I will give it 3 out of 4 stars. Stay tunes for this.
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Post by innah96 »

Insomniac07 wrote: 16 Feb 2018, 00:47 And Then I met Margaret was highly entertaining and motivational read for me. I liked the writing style and the way each anecdote was formatted. It's a good book for people who doubt themselves and their abilities. But i can also see why others have complaints. It's not meant for those who have serious issues such as disabilities or health issues.
I haven't read the book. Just wondering why it isn't meant for those with serious issues, such as disabilities or health issues? Is the book offensive?
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Post by Cate Mbevi »

It is a good read. The stories in it make it easy to read and also easy to remember. It contains practical inspirations to be applied in daily life.
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Post by damaris nyahondo »

I think that this book is definately good and i would honestly like you to publish more books like this and don't forget me please when you will be launching your new book and you have already published it please remember me and this book of your is totally good.keep up the good work. :D :D :D
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Post by annunaki001 »

I've propably never read any self-help books, but from reading these comments, i'm getting quite intrested in reading it:And Then I Met Margaret. :eusa-think:
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Post by Iamsofia »

I really do not read self help books but, the story was captivating and inspiring. I must say I enjoyed reading the book. I like the fact that every chapter was short, it was really easy to understand.
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Post by DustinPBrown »

Kassandra_Flamouri wrote: 13 Feb 2018, 20:12 Are spoilers allowed in these forums? Overall, I definitely agree with those who said the tone came off as arrogant, but there's one particular episode in the book that really bothered me and I'm curious to see if other people felt the same way or if I'm reading too much into it or something.
I don't know about spoilers or not (I assume they're allowed since it says "overall" in the title, but who knows), but can I ask which episode bothered you the most in terms of arrogant tone? Was it the one where he goes to Pamplona?
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Post by Sorchadorcha »

Usually I'm not a huge fan of "self help" books and I tend to avoid them. I'm glad I decided to give this book a chance as it exceeded my expectations. I found each story reminded me of the important lessons to be learned in life. I would recommend it to anyone, regardless of the genre.
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Post by JessNWheeler »

After reading this book, do you look at the world differently, as the author promises?

I’m not sure that I now look at the world differently. I didn’t find this to be a life changing book, but I did enjoy the author’s storytelling.
Regardless of the life lessons he was hoping to teach, the author is a wise and talented storyteller.
His optimism and search for inner peace is, in it’s own way, somewhat inspirational in my opinion.
We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars. - Oscar Wilde
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