Saturday, October 2, 2010

Sophie's world - An introduction

Title: Sophie's World
Author: Jostein Gaarder
Genre: Philosophy



Status: Stil reading




Ok, so Im breaking my own rule of posting a review after reading. Since this is a book which can be read part by part, I'm allowing myself to share interesting anecdotes that i found while reading.
Sophie's world was a random choice when I was browsing for book in local bookstore. I wanted a change so I took the plunge into what i though a serious affair of reading philosophy. I'm loving it. Who knew it could be so fun. Jostein Gaarder  is popular Norwegian author who wrote books which inspire people to think. Sophie's world is one of his most popular work.
So he introduces to us a teenage girl, Sophie who is 15 and receives an anonymous letter with two questions, 'who are you' and 'where does the world come from'. There is a story within a story here. Let me not spoil the fun for you. Since I haven't finished the book yet, here are some anecdotes which might tempt you to read it.
  • The only thing we require to be good philosophers is the faculty of wonder. Pg 14
  • We who live here are microscopic insects existing deep down in the rabbit's fur. But philosophers are always trying to climb up the fine hairs of the fur in order to stare right into the magician's eyes. Pg 13
  • A philosopher is one who love wisdom~Plato  Pg 77
  • Sophie decided that lego really could be the most ingenious toy in the world. Pg 37
  • Nature is really built up of different atoms that join and separate again. A hydrogen atom in a cell at the end of my nose was once part of an elephant's trunk. A carbon atom in my cardiac muscle was once in the tail of a dinosaur. Pg 39
  • We do not live in our own time alone;we carry our history within us. Pg 163

3 comments:

  1. After reading this, just went a head and purchased this online..thanks a lot for sharing!


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  2. I adore this book - I read it when I was about 15, and again recently. I find some of the fiction side gets a bit much, without spoiling anything, but the explanations of the philosophy are just amazing. Hope you enjoy the rest of the book :)

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  3. I read this in my high school philosophy class and loved it. It's been a long time and I'm itching to read it again. I'm glad you're enjoying it.

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