Scan barcode
foxmoon's review against another edition
5.0
Absolutely vital and evergreen reference material. May I never forget about the power of this book.
hmbagnall's review against another edition
4.0
Good suggestions and easy to read, but very highbrow. Takes some thinking with your noticing
saccalai's review
3.0
Instead of being constantly distracted by countless things, try noticing what is around you. This book has 131 exercises with 4 levels of difficulty. Some of which you can do there and then, others that need a bit of time or preparation. You may not want to do all but there's bound to be something you'll want to try.
Some examples are to draw something instead of taking a photo, spend a long time looking at one thing, or go back and see it many times until you see something different. Try to look at the world as if you were a vandal, an improv performer, a child. These can all make you see different things. Identify something you've always taken for granted and find out it's backstory. Meet a friend halfway, work out the exact halfway mark between you and meet there, maybe you'll find a great new restaurant.
It expands to noticing sounds, touch, smell and even taste.
Some examples are to draw something instead of taking a photo, spend a long time looking at one thing, or go back and see it many times until you see something different. Try to look at the world as if you were a vandal, an improv performer, a child. These can all make you see different things. Identify something you've always taken for granted and find out it's backstory. Meet a friend halfway, work out the exact halfway mark between you and meet there, maybe you'll find a great new restaurant.
It expands to noticing sounds, touch, smell and even taste.
nietzschesghost's review
4.0
The Art of Noticing is essentially another mindfulness reference guide but it approaches how we become mindful in relatively innovative new ways and these are compiled in the book as 131 different exercises. Each exercise aims to make the reader more consciously aware and to help them notice more about life that may usually pass them by. They are graded by level of difficulty from easy right through to advanced. Mr Walker emphasises the need to pay attention to the world around us and to firmly plant ourselves in the present. This is an interesting book and you can tell a lot of work and research went into producing it. Recommended to those who are seeking new and diverse ways to achieve mindfulness. Many thanks to Ebury Press for an ARC.
robosquid's review
4.0
The premise of this book is that we are all too distracted by modern life (especially technology - mobile phones, etc) that we become de-sensitised to what matters. We are conditioned to plough through meaningless lists of tasks and activities set by others, and not seeing or doing what is important to ourselves. "Do you want to look back on a life of items crossed off lists drawn up in response to the demands of others?" is a sentiment that will hit home for most of us.
The book goes on to describe and suggest 131 activities that will help regain the lost art of noticing. Some are frivolous, some are amusing and a few are a bit daft - for example if I stared at an item in a department store for 5 minutes I think security would be hovering nearby! Others are quite clever and 'do-able': Find the numbers 1-100, in order, when out and about. Deconstruct things, even adverts, and think about how they came into being (both socially and physically). Look upwards - it's often surprising what's above eye-level. Think - how would a child see / describe this? View everyday objects from different angles. Take an unfamiliar route. Stand still and make a list of all the things you hear.
There were many interesting things I learnt about or highlighted - the artist Oakoak for example - I spent ages looking at online pictures of his (often hilarious) street art.
The downside to this book is it's rather American / city based and uses museums as source material for quite a few of the activities, although I suppose any public space would do.
The book was a fun yet thought-provoking read and I will definitely engage in some of the less demanding activities.
The book goes on to describe and suggest 131 activities that will help regain the lost art of noticing. Some are frivolous, some are amusing and a few are a bit daft - for example if I stared at an item in a department store for 5 minutes I think security would be hovering nearby! Others are quite clever and 'do-able': Find the numbers 1-100, in order, when out and about. Deconstruct things, even adverts, and think about how they came into being (both socially and physically). Look upwards - it's often surprising what's above eye-level. Think - how would a child see / describe this? View everyday objects from different angles. Take an unfamiliar route. Stand still and make a list of all the things you hear.
There were many interesting things I learnt about or highlighted - the artist Oakoak for example - I spent ages looking at online pictures of his (often hilarious) street art.
The downside to this book is it's rather American / city based and uses museums as source material for quite a few of the activities, although I suppose any public space would do.
The book was a fun yet thought-provoking read and I will definitely engage in some of the less demanding activities.
More...