Review of The Truth About Plumbing
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Nefertyth Andrade
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- Latest Review: The Truth About Plumbing by Avram Friedman
Review of The Truth About Plumbing
[Following is a volunteer review of "The Truth About Plumbing" by Avram Friedman.]
“The Truth About Plumbing” is a deep dive into modern plumbing, written by Avram Friedman. It is a very short book packed with a lot of information in just a few pages. It blends humor, philosophy, history, science, and personal insights. The book examines how water is handled while exposing the flaws and contradictions in modern plumbing systems.
The general vocabulary used is fine. I had to check the Kindle dictionary every now and then, but not nearly as often as I have had to with many other works. However, when Avram started talking about plumbing supplies, he got too technical, and I didn’t understand much. The book is also not perfectly edited, as I encountered mistakes that could have easily been avoided with some proofreading.
Avram begins by clarifying that he isn’t anti-technology, which I think is a good way to start a book that criticizes how modern society operates, but he later proves he is, in fact, anti-technology (more on that later). He then uses science to explain how water is necessary for life on Earth and spends the next few pages discussing how rare water is in the universe and how specific the conditions must be for a planet to sustain it.
I think chapter one, “All Human Problems Are Caused by Plumbing,” is a bit of a stretch. No, many human problems are not caused by plumbing; in fact, most are not. I see where he’s coming from, but it’s an exaggeration to claim that every single problem stems from how water and waste are handled. But who knows? Maybe this wasn’t meant to be taken literally.
Despite claiming not to be anti-technology, I feel like he actually is. While it’s true that man-made structures will eventually fail, in my opinion, he downplays the impact of proper maintenance. We have millennia-old buildings still standing today because of good upkeep, so it’s not as "short-term" as he claims. Avram also tends to elevate plumbers above other professionals, referring to them as “skilled masters” and “artisans.” While I don’t mean to say plumbing isn’t a valuable profession, he overdoes it, seemingly portraying plumbers as conceptual artists rather than technical workers. Additionally, whenever something goes wrong, plumbers are depicted as victims. His portrayal of the profession suggests that they hold the world in their hands, never make mistakes, and are simply flawless.
Overall, Avram stretches reality to serve his own purposes—convincing the reader that plumbing is humanity’s single biggest problem. He oversimplifies complex societal issues, implying that with proper water management solutions, the world would be perfect, which is completely untrue. It was a fun read, and I appreciated its brevity, but no—I don’t believe universal access to water and proper waste disposal would end wars, for example.
This book is suitable for anyone whose frontal lobe is fully developed (about 25 years and older) with a decent level of critical thinking. I rate it 3/5. I deducted one star for the editing and one star for my personal opinion of the work.
******
The Truth About Plumbing
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
“The Truth About Plumbing” is a deep dive into modern plumbing, written by Avram Friedman. It is a very short book packed with a lot of information in just a few pages. It blends humor, philosophy, history, science, and personal insights. The book examines how water is handled while exposing the flaws and contradictions in modern plumbing systems.
The general vocabulary used is fine. I had to check the Kindle dictionary every now and then, but not nearly as often as I have had to with many other works. However, when Avram started talking about plumbing supplies, he got too technical, and I didn’t understand much. The book is also not perfectly edited, as I encountered mistakes that could have easily been avoided with some proofreading.
Avram begins by clarifying that he isn’t anti-technology, which I think is a good way to start a book that criticizes how modern society operates, but he later proves he is, in fact, anti-technology (more on that later). He then uses science to explain how water is necessary for life on Earth and spends the next few pages discussing how rare water is in the universe and how specific the conditions must be for a planet to sustain it.
I think chapter one, “All Human Problems Are Caused by Plumbing,” is a bit of a stretch. No, many human problems are not caused by plumbing; in fact, most are not. I see where he’s coming from, but it’s an exaggeration to claim that every single problem stems from how water and waste are handled. But who knows? Maybe this wasn’t meant to be taken literally.
Despite claiming not to be anti-technology, I feel like he actually is. While it’s true that man-made structures will eventually fail, in my opinion, he downplays the impact of proper maintenance. We have millennia-old buildings still standing today because of good upkeep, so it’s not as "short-term" as he claims. Avram also tends to elevate plumbers above other professionals, referring to them as “skilled masters” and “artisans.” While I don’t mean to say plumbing isn’t a valuable profession, he overdoes it, seemingly portraying plumbers as conceptual artists rather than technical workers. Additionally, whenever something goes wrong, plumbers are depicted as victims. His portrayal of the profession suggests that they hold the world in their hands, never make mistakes, and are simply flawless.
Overall, Avram stretches reality to serve his own purposes—convincing the reader that plumbing is humanity’s single biggest problem. He oversimplifies complex societal issues, implying that with proper water management solutions, the world would be perfect, which is completely untrue. It was a fun read, and I appreciated its brevity, but no—I don’t believe universal access to water and proper waste disposal would end wars, for example.
This book is suitable for anyone whose frontal lobe is fully developed (about 25 years and older) with a decent level of critical thinking. I rate it 3/5. I deducted one star for the editing and one star for my personal opinion of the work.
******
The Truth About Plumbing
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: The Truth About Plumbing by Avram Friedman
