The Laws of Human Nature

At the time of this review, I'm only halfway through reading this book, but I love it SO much. I am going after it hardcore with a highlighter and sticky tabs. I have read over 300 pages (this is a BIG book btw) and have not read a single page that was not worthwhile.This book is easy to comprehend and apply. I recommend taking your time in digesting it, as the lessons are quite practical in daily life. It is truly helping me understand myself and others and why we all behave the way we do.Each "Law" is a different chapter and the author explains the law, how to recognize it in yourself and others, and how to address such. He also includes a story about a real person from history and an interesting anecdote that applies to the lesson. I have never been much of a history buff but these stories are fascinating and therefore I'm learning not only about psychology but history as well.I cannot wait to keep devouring this book. I would STRONGLY encourage any human being who wants to intentionally become more self-aware and tolerant to read this book. I will definitely be checking out more books from this author.

Naturally, it was in Robert Greene’s nature to write this book. Accustomed as he has been to writing about human activity involving power relationships, Greene has produced yet another extraordinary book jam-packed with fascinating insights about how the mind of homo sapiens often works in dealing with other members of the species.As Greene describes in the introduction, this book is a codebook for deciphering people’s behavior, with each chapter telling the story of some iconic individual(s) who illustrates the law being covered, along with advice on how to operate successfully (if that’s possible) under this law.So what laws (all negative aspects or shortcomings, 18 to be exact, of human behavior) does Green focus on in this book? Irrationality, narcissism, role-playing, compulsive behavior, covetousness, shortsightedness, defensiveness, self-sabotage, repression, envy, grandiosity, gender rigidity, aimlessness, conformity, fickleness, aggression, generational myopia, and death denial.As usual with Greene’s not-inexpensive books, he gives one a lot of ideas and pages to chew on for the money, leaving one well satisfied with the investment. If I do have any criticisms, the main one relates to the stories he uses to highlight the laws. Quite often the characterizations are so extensively detailed and intriguing that one can easily forget the law being discussed. Also, there’s his possible hairsplitting of each of his 18 laws into numerous subcategories, reminding one of the mythical Eskimo vocabulary for the word “snow,” which can get one to question how useful the subcategories are depending upon one’s situation. In addition, some chapters kept me wondering, for example, the one on gender rigidity. Do those things really happen? This brings up a related general criticism: a selected bibliography, yes, but no supporting footnotes to back up a few especially dubious, IMHO, assertions.All in all, however, I believe you’ll find the book well-written, enjoyable, and educational as regards important strategies the less-than-honorable portion of the population uses and the strategies the more honorable can use to successfully counter.Of possible consideration for those interested in a book distilling five main life strategies from 87 of history’s master strategists: Strategic Advantage: How to Win in War, Business, and Life

I have read Mastery, The 48 laws of power, The art of seduction, but this has to be one of his best books. I really like how we can see more of his insight to historical interpretations compare to his other books. I was always left feeling that I wanted to hear more from his mind rather than a detailed view of the historical people he uses, which are still fun to learn about but I definitely prefer how deep he goes into analyzing human emotions etc. Señor Verde is ahead of his time. When I read his books, especially this one, I feel like I’m reading a classic that will be treasure for the coming generations, hopefully studied at schools. It has taken me some time to read it because of how heavy it is with having to stop and reflect and think if I’m one of these people he warns us about, which we all are, to some extent. Each time I finish a chapter I want to rush and tell my mom, my husband, my cat Nemesis, the world, etc. I hope this book gains more popularity for the sake of all the valuable lessons we can learn from it. Cannot thank Greene enough for the psychological insight he offers at a price of $15! It’s like stumbling into a true diamond that is basically free, where the rest of the world is obsessed with treasuring their zirconium crap.

Every chapter is gem. More people should read this. Full of wisdom and ways of thinking for a lot of our inner struggles. I would say it’s the best book from Robert Greene.

Best book to understand human psychology with examples. I loved it.

I’ve read a couple of books from Greene and they are always entertaining and fun to read/listen. This one is ok, it’s good, but does it really change your life? Not mine. It’s a pretty long book, took some time to get through it, but then you have to say was it worth my time/energy/money and the question is .. maybe. Time is precious and I think this book is good but a good use of time, I think not.

A much needed book for everyone