Sum: Forty Tales from the Afterlives by David Eagleman
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Book Reviews of Sum: Forty Tales from the Afterlives
Book Review: SUM, an exquisitely delicious read.
Summary: 5 Stars
SUM: FORTY TALES FROM THE AFTERLIVES by David Eagleman (2009) is an exquisitely delicious read. Forty dishes, each tantalizingly different. Take them one at a time, savour and process. My favorite is "Microbes", possibly because of my recent interest in bacteria.
SUM reminds me of the short fantasies of Italo Calvino where different systems in the universe, from tiny cells to massive galaxies are anthropomorphized creatively. David Eagleman provides forty short vignettes of alternative afterlives. Their purpose is to stimulate imagination, not "answer" the question about what comes "after life".
In its small size, 5 x 7.5 inches. "SUM" also reminds me of two similarly tiny but powerful books, "my words and where I want them" by Herbert Brun (1990 - 4 x 5.8 inches) and "knots" by R.D. Laing (1970 - 5.5 x 8.5 inches). But, it is not the small size that unites these books, but the short, well crafted, highly creative and intelligent, vignettes by inquisitive minds for inquisitive minds- each drawing you to read them again and again and again.
My wife heard David Eagleman at a Tucson book fair and was greatly impressed. I borrowed the book from the library at her recommendation and will purchase it soon so I can have it to return to many times, as I do with the other two little - but fully packed - books.
Book Review: Poignant & Thought-provoking
Summary: 5 Stars
SUM is both poignant and thought-provoking, while avoiding all the historical pitfalls of literature on the subject of death and the afterlife. Not preachy or pretentious, SUM is essentially a page-turner, but a page-turner that one revisits time and time again to savor a missed allusion or a significant observation.
Each alternate explanation of the hereafter is a fresh look at life and the living, communicated through a unique voice. Some heart-wrenching, some playful- none trite and all witty. Eagleman truly has a special gift for boiling concepts and ideas down to their simplest form, and in SUM, he has written something that will speak to each and every one of us. It is a book that can not only entertain, but also spark new lines of thought and imagination.
Upon mentioning the book to a new acquaintance, he replied that 3 of his friends had read it and were buying copies for all their friends- his own was sitting out in his car. And how often are people so moved to share a piece of literature that they buy copies for all their friends? I think this only speaks to SUMS' brilliance, creativity, and singularity.
Book Review: Great Things Come In Small Packages
Summary: 5 Stars
Great things come in small packages in David Eagleman's fiction debut Sum: Forty Tales from the Afterlives. A neuroscientist at Baylor College, Eagleman, who already hasseveral work of nonfictin to his name, took 7 years to write this 100 page wonder of 40 vignettes (which was originally 70 stories).
But don't let the number of pages fool you. This is a metaphysical literary achievement told with wit, intelligence, and a complete understanding of human nature. Among the afterlives Eagleman envisions are a life where you relive all of your events, but reshuffled ("Sum"), a life where you play the background characters of other people's dreams (The Cast), a quiet afterlife that is merely put on pause, as humanity sleeps till its death (Conservation) Eagleman's meditation on god, life, the nature of the universe and human nature are poetically written to make you all at once cry and laugh at how wise and honest it is.
One of the hidden gems of the year, Stephen Fry recommended it on Twitter, and even without his applause, this book is an absolute must read.
Book Review: The best book I've ever read.
Summary: 5 Stars
Sum is brilliant, and I think it's destined to go down as one of the greatest works of all time.
The more I read it, the more I enjoy it, like listening to my favorite song over and over again. And, I think that makes sense, because the book is about the essence of living, using these stories to explore the preciousness of life and the nuanced relationship between ourselves, our dreams, and our mortality.
As a literary work, it's brilliant. The language is captivating, and densely packed with gems that offer you beautiful, new ways of looking at the world.
As a philosophical work, it's revolutionary. Each chapter presents a novel way of looking at some of the oldest, deepest questions in philosophy.
And, as a work of fiction, it's addictive. Reading Sum for the first time is like being introduced to an amazing, gourmet food that you've never tasted before, and each time I re-read a chapter, I feel like I'm savoring the food again.
Book Review: Thought-provoking
Summary: 5 Stars
This book is interesting and thought-provoking.
Although the book is billed as speculation on the afterlife, I found the chapters to be more a creative commentary on priorities and unexpected consequences. Each, in its own way, uses eternity as a field of play in which to explore morality.
For example, in one chapter, he suggests that when we die we don't really die. Rather we live on in the afterlife with the opportunity to see ourselves as we truly were rather than how we thought we were. And that seeing ourselves honestly and fully for the first time is what finally kills us.
I wouldn't turn to this book for a serious investigation into what happens after you die. I would highly recommend this book for a thought-provoking take on what really matters.