As made obvious in my previous posts, I lean heavily in favor of fiction when it comes to grabbing my next book. And yet, there is clearly tremendous value in reading books that are based on fact, history and the people that have lived, or do live, amongst us...
A couple of years ago, my best friend, Jesse (who admits to reading at an infrequent pace) told me that I absolutely must read a book he had stumbled upon. Knowing about Jesse's reading habits, I was immediately intrigued that he would so enthusiastically champion a book.
Jesse went on to explain that this book in particular was “life-changing” and that he would gladly lend the book to me as he had already finished it. This set more bells and whistles off in my head than at the Gotham City Fire Department when the Joker is in town. I asked him, with much doubt, “You mean, you read it in its entirety?”
Jesse had, in fact, read the complete work of non-fiction and held true to his word when he slipped the thin book into my hand the next day. Little did I know that this unassuming book held its true weight not in ounces or word count, but in the “meaning” of its contents…
Man’s Search for Meaning is a book that has been heralded as a bucket-list read by a tremendous amount of critics and was most recently noted as one of the most recommended books in Tim Ferriss’s Tribe of Mentors.
Written by Viktor Frankl, the 160 page quick read is a humbling, somber and excruciatingly honest look into the author’s own experience as a prisoner of Auschwitz and other concentration camps during World War II. However, the story is by no means a woe-is-me tale by Frankl, quite the opposite in fact. In MSFM, Dr. Frankl (who was well known for his work in medicine and philosophy) details the importance of “suffering” and how it defines what it is to be human. He even speaks to how acceptance of this idea allowed him (and others) to survive during their darkest days of imprisonment.
Frankl explains this thesis, the significance of suffering, by splitting the book into two parts. The first part details the concentration camps where he came to terms with brutal facts like calculating that he had about a “1 in 20 chance of surviving” while being held by the Nazi regime. The second part of MSFM dives into his own formation of the “Logotherapy” model that he would teach and expand upon throughout the rest of his life after the conclusion of the war.
The book is not deserving of some hasty summary by me or any other common-place reviewer. In reality, its true value is hidden within the many, many quotes and anecdotes that will leave the reader with a perspective on life that was always apparent, but perhaps all too easily neglected or ignored.
Along with the quote above, here’s a brief preview of the type of wisdom that Dr. Frankl imparts on us. This quote in particular exemplifies the theme of the book nicely:
“What man actually needs is not some tension-less state but rather the striving and struggling for some goal worthy of him.”
At such a small size, Frankl’s magnum opus is worthy of not just one read, but multiple reads throughout a lifetime. Thus, it is my hope that I can be your own “Jesse” and encourage each of you to take time to read this wonderful, moving book as soon as your lives permit you to do so. Or even better, perhaps you can put the book into the hands of somebody you hold dear.
Either way, I am certain Dr. Frankl will continue to enlighten the masses with his timeless words and unflinching reminders of what it is to be human.
Rest in peace, Doc.