3 reviews for The Last Lecture
You must be logged in to post a review.
The Last Lecture
by Randy Pausch
Description:
A lot of professors give talks titled “The Last Lecture.” Professors are asked to consider their demise and to ruminate on what matters most to them. And while they speak, audiences can’t help but mull the same question: What wisdom would we impart to the world if we knew it was our last chance? If we had to vanish tomorrow, what would we want as our legacy? When Randy Pausch, a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon, was asked to give such a lecture, he didn’t have to imagine it as his last, since he had recently been diagnosed with terminal cancer. But the lecture he gave–“Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams”–wasn’t about dying. It was about the importance of overcoming obstacles, of enabling the dreams of others, of seizing every moment (because “time is all you have…and you may find one day that you have less than you think”). It was a summation of everything Randy had come to believe. It was about living. In this book, Randy Pausch has combined the humor, inspiration and intelligence that made his lecture such a phenomenon and given it an indelible form. It is a book that will be shared for generations to come!!
About The Author
Randolph Frederick “Randy” Pausch (October 23, 1960 July 25, 2008) was an American professor of computer science, humancomputer interaction, and design at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Pausch learned that he had pancreatic cancer in September 2006, and in August 2007 he was given a terminal diagnosis: “3 to 6 months of good health left”. He gave an upbeat lecture titled “The Last Lecture: Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams” on September 18, 2007, at Carnegie Mellon, which became a popular YouTube video and led to other media appearances. He then co-authored a book called The Last Lecture on the same theme, which became a New York Times best-seller.
Pausch died of complications from pancreatic cancer on July 25, 2008.
Skryf Review
“Good Reading”
Sejal
It’s hard to criticize a dying man. I think this is a great book for his wife, family, children, and friends to read, and although it has some good life lessons that are not revolutionary but do need repeating from time to time, this book is not well written. At points while I was reading I found myself actually disliking Pausch and his way of presenting himself, but then I realized that this would perhaps make me a horrible person. Maybe I am. I very much prefer Tuesdays With Morrie for a similar message that is presented in a more eloquent way.
Kahaan
It quickly summarizes the fear, anxiety, anger but most importantly imparts his version of what’s important in a easy eloquent way. No it’s not the final word on dying, but a noble attempt by an even nobler person.I will hand out copies of this book to everyone whom I love, starting with my darling father who is a (recent) non-hotchkins lymphoma stage 4 survivor and is remarkably like Randy Pausch in too many ways to mention. I learn from him every day. What Randy said about ‘unfair’ vs. ‘unlucky’ I heard verbatim almost a year before “The Last Lecture’ delivered with the same sentiment as we dealt with the diagnosis. Perhaps it’s a trait of college professors??!”The Last Lecture” may very well be “The First Lecture” for many, propelling us to be better, happier and more fulfilled for the rest of our lives. Sure, we’ve heard many of his points before. I don’t wish to overthink why this time it smacked me like a 2×4. I would rather concentrate on doing something with this enthusiasm.
He doesn’t walk on water. Rather, he’s got his feet planted firmly on the ground. In fact, he’s still running on it.