Book Review: The Book of Questions

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I have a girlfriend and she has two kids. They are 12 and 10 years old. They do not know me and I do not know them. For me, that is stress. For them, that is distrust. They are good kids and have begun to get used to me. Their true nature has finally come out and , my God, do they have energy.

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Every pay day, I buy a book or two. I take the train and usually finish one book a week. While downloading my books, I see The Book of Questions by Gregory Stock. This book was first published in 1987. My ex-wife bought it for me and my kids and we loved it. It kept their attention and they loved the questions. Even my ex-wife liked to answer the tough questions too. I thought this might be a great book for my girlfriend’s daughters. It thought it might quiet them down and give us the opportunity to get to know each other.

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The Book of Questions is just that: a big book filled with questions. All of the questions are open-ended and have no right or wrong answers. It is not trivia. The book deals with moral and ethical question on such topics as technology, love, sex, money, integrity, generosity, pride and death. The questions provoke thought and every question read aloud is usually followed up by silence as the answers need to be thought through. Not only does one learn about those who participate, but he also learns about himself. It is meant to promote personal growth and deepening relationships as well as a great way to create lively and meaningful conversations.

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Let me give you the first question in the book:

Technology has become a part of us.
Would you rather lose the use of all motorized vehicles,
all telecommunication devices and computers,
or one of your hands?

This question started a thirty minute conversation. And I was VERY surprised by the answers the kids gave. To be honest, I was a little surprised about the answer I gave (I said “No problem. Take my left hand”). And we expanded the question. What about a leg? What about your sight? What about your hearing? The kids did not stop at the original question but continued, modifying the question.

I believe this is a great book. Especially for children. I enjoy the questions also and I always get an eyebrow raised when I ask another person, no matter the age. Very much worth the money. And, since I use Amazon’s Kindle app on my phone, it is always with me.

I rate it 5 out of 5 stars.

Pictures courtesy of:
amazon.com
tools4teens.com
www.thrivingnow.com
zonya.com

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