Genealogy Books - The Most Brilliant Thoughts of All Time (In Two Lines or Less)

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Spotlight customer reviews:
Customer Rating:

Summary: A Mite Self-Serving
Comment: The title alone makes the modest person back up a little and think, "Are you SURE?" And yes, the
author considers a few of his own Most Brilliant Thoughts worthy of inclusion. (We blush for him.)
I was surprised that the "Reader's Digest" was the source for some of the material, and a few (very
few, to be fair) of the brilliant thinkers were Oprah, Erica Jong, and Marlene Dietrich. Delightful
ladies all, but Most Brilliant Thinkers of All Time?

I am a junkie for books of quotes and maxims,
though I freely admit this shows a certain lack of depth. There are many quotes included that you
wish you had for ready reference, such as Ralph Waldo Emerson's

"People seem not to see that
their opinion of the world is also a confession of character."

My, wouldn't I just like to spring
that one on some of my more pessimistic friends! However, unless you memorize the ones you like,
"Most Brilliant, etc." is not user-friendly. It has no subject or line index, which I find very
irritating and a major drawback.

The sections are vague, and quotes are repeated in different
sections. It could be Mr. Shannahan thought one quote applicable to many situations, but it seems
like padding. The book is handsome, with the quotes well spaced and easy to read. I met a few I
had never seen before, and am stirred to further inquiry on some of the authors. Grade: C-

Customer Rating:

Summary: John Shanahan Has Got to Be Kidding
Comment: Mr. Shanahan shows unmitigated chutzpah in sprinkling sayings of his own throughout this book. That
gives me an idea: I am putting together stories about the greatest moments in all of sports history,
and will now include that time I hit a home run to win a big stick ball game when I was in the
eighth grade. How can readers take this collection seriously when it is, at best, a cover for
shameless self-promotion by its editor? Shame on Mr. Shanahan and shame on the publishers!

Customer Rating:

Summary: Presumptuous of Author to Include Own Quotes
Comment: I found it outrageously presumptuous of Mr. Shanahan to immodestly include his own sayings in this
book. It is for others, and history, to decide if his bon mots are brilliant, let alone among the
most brilliant thoughts of all time. In reading his obviously self-penned biographic blurb, it's
apparent to me that Mr. Shanahan has a lot of money and clout, and so was able to push this vanity
project through to publication.

Customer Rating:

Summary: Good despite the sophomoric title
Comment: I have found this to be a very thought-provoking collection. My biggest complaint (and I'm surprised
no one else has remarked on this) is that MANY of the quotes appear in more than one chapter (though
the index slyly lists just the first occurrence). This is bordering on the dishonest in a book of
this sort, esp since there is no caveat such as "Some quotations appear in more than one chapter." I
guess only someone like myself who reads a book like this from cover to cover would notice.

Customer Rating:

Summary: Such a good idea, such a disappointment.
Comment: I purchased this book from the title, afterall a one or two line comment has the opportunity to get
to the core of an issue.

However, the book has far too many average phrases and very few have a
business use - perhaps I expect too much.

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