4 out of 4 stars
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That Place of Knowledge By Philip Alan Shakla
“The goal is to improve how you think. As you learn more, you can train your mind to reach higher levels of thinking. This is why the process of learning is long. It takes time and experience. Higher thinking is part of this process. The more experience you have, the more you can learn. When you learn more, you can develop your thinking. Just keep thinking.”
That Place of Knowledge by Philip Alan Shalka explores the journey through the eyes of Sabre, Philip’s service dog. Sabre from the time he was a puppy knew he would be assisting a partner and was specifically trained to be autism assistance dog. Sabre was assigned to Philip, a nonverbal autistic teen who seemed to share Sabre’s excitement for adventures. One day, Philip and Sabre travel down a trapdoor in their pool to the world of Ancient Greece, where they both meet and converse with renowned philosopher, Aristotle.
This thirty-page adventure gives a voice to Philip, Sabre, and Aristotle, as they create a dialogue for why learning and curiosity will always be one of the most important tools a person utilizes in their life. Philip and Aristotle’s conversations vary through why increasing knowledge not only helps yourself progress in the world, but also gives you the ability to teach others as well. The discussion of knowledge as a lifelong journey is inspiring and explores how asking even the most basic of questions can open up possibilities and entire worlds.
My honest opinion of this story is that I cannot give it enough praise. It is a hard story to categorize and I think that’s what makes it perfect. This story is about how much of a rich inner world you can cultivate by asking questions and invoking discussion and debates and continuing to better educate yourself. But instead of writing a personal essay, Philip created a whole world and characters that hammered in place the message he wanted to spread. Philip gave narration to his service dog Sabre, had multiple in-depth discussion with the famous Aristotle, and gave himself a voice to create this stimulating and rich world.
Philip’s dialogue with Aristotle was brilliant and inspiring, and it touches not only on how autism does not put on a limit on his own life, but how asking questions and exploring can open anybody’s life. The short and eventful journey of Philip and his service dog Sabre bring a broad scope of how asking questions and curiosity can lead to a wealth of knowledge on not just broad topics but how it can lead to knowing yourself and what makes you as a person happy.
The only critique I can find with the novel is that by the end I wanted to read more. It was an engaging and fast read, and even despite that, I had to reread specific sections to reflect more. I think that Philip’s writing was simplistic but still detailed. The dialogue was mesmerizing, and I loved the choice of giving the narration to his dog Sabre, bringing a whole new angle of the story.
I would rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. The writing had heart and good message to convey, that can apply to almost anyone’s lives. Philip wrote both a very good story and an insightful look on how philosophy from hundreds of years ago can still be applied to modern life. It has an important message on how educating ourselves and others is not something we should just learn in school but should be a lifelong pursuit.
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That Place of Knowledge
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