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What On Earth Have I Done?: Stories, Observations, and Affirmations by Robert Fulghum
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What On Earth Have I Done?: Stories, Observations, and Affirmations

by Robert Fulghum

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Another moving, entertaining collection of essays. Fulghum’s mission seems to be to fully engage with the world around him, and he continues to carry it out as meaningfully as he did way back when he wrote Everything I Need to Know, I Learned in Kindergarten. I often found myself laughing out loud and reading parts out loud to my husband. A bit where he goes jogging in Crete is particularly hilarious. To them, he looks like a priest dressed only in his underwear, and in his mangling of the spoken and unspoken Greek language, he calls out “squid” for hello and gives them the equivalent of the finger when he means to wave. I also especially enjoyed the last essay, which speaks of finding the right “league” and the right “scale” to be successful. A dose of Fulghum reminds one to slow down, to look for wisdom and meaning in unexpected places, to find one’s place in the world and be content with it, and never to let fear of looking foolish hold you back. ( )
  jholcomb | May 30, 2009 |
I have already finished reading the new book one day after release. The stories are grouped by location: Moab, Seattle and the island of Crete. These locations are very familiar to any previous readers as he has shuttled between them for something like thirty years (born in Waco TX by the way). Some really great stories to add to my personal and mental collection of favorites. Happy that one he shared at a signing is about the "players"--those people willing to jump in and engage in a game of imagination. For example, at a bookstore in answer to "How can I help you?" he responds "Happy birthday" (apparently this is common for him - sometimes you are late, or early and sometimes spot on as he says). Best to read the whole set of linked episodes to find out that happened next. More stories about grandchildren and less about being a minister or other previous occupations. Plenty of references to great thinkers and inspirational writers and philosophers. Reading him opens up my mind to the larger world around us, no matter the scale of observation. ( )
  amarie | Sep 19, 2007 |
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Amazon.com Product Description (ISBN 0312365497, Hardcover)

Robert Fulghum’s new book begins with a question we’ve all asked ourselves: “What on Earth have I done?”  As Fulghum finds out, the answer is never easy and, almost always, surprising.  For the last couple of years, Fulghum has been traveling the world - from Seattle to the Moab Desert to Crete - looking for a few fellow travelers interested in thinking along with him as he delights in the unexpected: trick-or-treating with your grandchildren dressed like a large rabbit, pots of daffodils blooming in mid-November, a view of the earth from outer space, the mysterious night sounds of the desert, every man's trip to a department store to buy socks, the raucous all-night long feast that is Easter in Greece, the trials and tribulations of plumbing problems and the friendship one can strike up with someone who doesn't share the same language. What on Earth Have I Done? is an armchair tour of everyday life as seen by Robert Fulghum, one of America’s great essayists, a man who has two feet planted firmly on the earth, one eye on the heavens and, at times, a tongue planted firmly in his cheek. Fulghum writes to his fellow travelers, with a sometimes light heart, about the deep and vexing mysteries of being alive and says, “This is my way of bringing the small boat of my life within speaking distance of yours.  Hello…” 

(retrieved from Amazon Fri, 24 Apr 2009 07:57:51 -0400)

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