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New York Times bestselling author Eric Weiner follows in the footsteps of Benjamin Franklin, examining his life for inspiring and practical lessons in a philosophical guide that's part biography, part travelogue, part personal prescription.
Ben Franklin lingers in our lives and in our imaginations. One of only two non-presidents to appear on US currency, Franklin was a founder, statesman, scientist, inventor, diplomat, publisher, and political philosopher. He believed in the American experiment, but he also viewed himself as an experiment in self-improvement. Now, inspired by the spirit of Franklin, Eric Weiner embarks on an ambitious quest to live his life the way Ben lived.
Not a straightforward biography, “Ben & Me” is a guide to living and thinking well, as Ben Franklin did. It is also about curiosity, diligence, and, most of all, the elusive goal of self-improvement. As Weiner follows Franklin from Philadelphia to Paris, Boston to London, he attempts to replicate Ben's experiments, large and small. We learn how can improve your relationship with someone by inducing them do a favor for you-a psychological phenomenon known as “The Franklin Effect”. We learn about the printing press, the early postal service, and, of course, electricity. And we learn about ethics, persuasion, humor, regret, appetite, and so much more.
In Franklin's time, to be virtuous was to be a good person in the best sense of the word. Weiner argues that we'd all be better off if we acted and thought a bit more like Ben did, even if he didn't always live up to his own high ideals. Engaging, smart, moving, quirky, Ben & Me distills the essence of Franklin's ideas into grounded, practical life lessons for all of us.
Ben Franklin lingers in our lives and in our imaginations. One of only two non-presidents to appear on US currency, Franklin was a founder, statesman, scientist, inventor, diplomat, publisher, and political philosopher. He believed in the American experiment, but he also viewed himself as an experiment in self-improvement. Now, inspired by the spirit of Franklin, Eric Weiner embarks on an ambitious quest to live his life the way Ben lived.
Not a straightforward biography, “Ben & Me” is a guide to living and thinking well, as Ben Franklin did. It is also about curiosity, diligence, and, most of all, the elusive goal of self-improvement. As Weiner follows Franklin from Philadelphia to Paris, Boston to London, he attempts to replicate Ben's experiments, large and small. We learn how can improve your relationship with someone by inducing them do a favor for you-a psychological phenomenon known as “The Franklin Effect”. We learn about the printing press, the early postal service, and, of course, electricity. And we learn about ethics, persuasion, humor, regret, appetite, and so much more.
In Franklin's time, to be virtuous was to be a good person in the best sense of the word. Weiner argues that we'd all be better off if we acted and thought a bit more like Ben did, even if he didn't always live up to his own high ideals. Engaging, smart, moving, quirky, Ben & Me distills the essence of Franklin's ideas into grounded, practical life lessons for all of us.