My review or Self-Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson could really be called an essay review as it is not a full-length book. But hey, this is my blog and since goodreads sees it as a book and the title of my series is Book Review:________, I am going to stick with it.

The idea that in the mid-1800s Emerson would put out a collection of essays encouraging people to trust their own guts was pretty revolutionary. In a time when society was training us to be cogs in a wheel, this was shocking.

This is a good read but be warned, you need to spend some time with it. This is a not a checklist of to-dos or a bullet point list of steps to becoming self-reliant. It attacks the issue on a more emotional and psychological level. This is an exercise in stretching the limits of your mind and trusting that it is all within you.

Don’t think the irony of a book telling someone to think for themselves is not lost on me. It makes sense though if this gives you permission to start trusting yourself.

This is a book (essay) that should be in everyone’s library and read at least once a decade.

by Chris Doelle

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