American Philosophy, John Kaag
American Philosophy, John Kaag
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American Philosophy
A Love Story

Author: John Kaag

Narrator: Josh Bloomberg

Unabridged: 8 hr 3 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 10/11/2016

Synopsis

The epic wisdom contained in a lost library helps the author turn his life around.In American Philosophy, John Kaag—a disillusioned philosopher at sea in his marriage and career—stumbles upon a treasure trove of rare books on an old estate in the hinterlands of New Hampshire that once belonged to the Harvard philosopher William Ernest Hocking. The library includes notes from Whitman, inscriptions from Frost, and first editions of Hobbes, Descartes, and Kant. As he begins to catalog and preserve these priceless books, Kaag rediscovers the very tenets of American philosophy—self-reliance, pragmatism, the transcendent—and sees them in a twenty-first-century context.Hocking was one of the last true giants of American philosophy. After studying under Harvard’s philosophical four—William James, George Santayana, Josiah Royce, and George Herbert Palmer—he held the most prestigious chair at the university for the first three decades of the twentieth century. And when his teachers eventually died, he collected the great books from their libraries (filled with marginalia) and combined them with his own rare volumes at his family’s estate. And there they remained for nearly eighty years, a time capsule of American thought.Part intellectual history, part memoir, American Philosophy is an invigorating investigation of American pragmatism and the wisdom that underlies a meaningful life.

About John Kaag

John Kaag is a professor of philosophy at the University of Massachusetts, Lowell. He is the author of Idealism, Pragmatism, and Feminism and Thinking through the Imagination: Aesthetics in Human Cognition. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Harper’s, the Christian Science Monitor, the Chronicle of Higher Education, and many other publications.

About Josh Bloomberg

Josh Bloomberg, an Earphones Award–winning narrator, is a trained professional actor with extensive audiobook experience as a director and narrator. Having worked with some of the biggest publishers in the audiobook industry, he is used to performing at high standards. He speaks English, French, and Hebrew fluently and is a member of the Audio Publishers Association. He also records his voice for commercial spots and other types of voice-over. In his spare time, he loves making homemade almond milk.

Reviews

Goodreads review by robin on May 20, 2023

A Philosopher In Love John Kaag's book, "American Philosophy: A Love Story" is deeply personal as well as philosophically insightful. Kaag, Professor of Philosophy at the University of Massachusetts, Lowell, writes for a broad audience and, in words he uses to describe his aim, "successfully bridges......more

Goodreads review by Marks54 on April 16, 2017

This is a really good book, although I did not expect to be so good. The book is a memoir of sorts of the author's experiences after completing his Ph.D. In philosophy and during his time as a post-doc at Harvard and an untenured Assistant Professor at UMass-Lowell. During this time, the author is a......more

Goodreads review by Edward on November 15, 2016

A beautifully crafted, thoughtfully written, remarkably engaging narrative that is part memoir, part intellectual history of philosophy, and compelling story of trying to save an endangered rare book collection. Intelligent, instructive, entertaining, and exhilarating.......more

Goodreads review by Graychin on December 15, 2016

Who wouldn’t like to discover a lost library of moldering antique books hidden away on a dilapidated New England estate? John Kaag did, which presented him with the excuse to write this book. Much as I wanted to discover something marvelous in it, however, I’m afraid I was disappointed. American Phil......more

Goodreads review by Perry on October 19, 2016

As a philosophy student and teacher I am biased, but overall I enjoyed the book. I liked the intellectual history side of it more than the memoir; there were a few times I found the story hard to follow, but I began to think of it more as the lecture style of a meandering yet fascinating professor.......more

Quotes

“Ideas may be Kaag’s first love, but they bring him a flesh-and-blood Beatrice in this open-hearted account of a young man’s second chance at a sentimental education.” Megan Marshall, Pulitzer Prize–winning author

“Remarkable…Part history of American philosophy, part personal narrative, American Philosophy…takes us deeply into that ‘epic love affair with wisdom’ that is philosophy…leads us to where the heart of true philosophy lies: to a deep and abiding sense of wonder. This is an absolutely stellar memoir.” Andre Dubus III, New York Times bestselling author

“Accurate, engaging, and scrupulous…an unconventional argument for who was right, and who was wrong, in the classical tradition of American philosophy from about 1830 to 1930…It is an argument strikingly suited to our time.” New York Times Book Review

“John Kaag hits the sweet spot between intellectual history and personal memoir in this transcendently wonderful love song to philosophy…a magnificently accessible introduction to fundamental ideas about freedom and what makes life significant. It’s an exhilarating read.” NPR

“A compelling hybrid combining memoir, a dramatic narrative about saving an endangered rare book collection, and the intellectual history of philosophy…The author deftly intertwines the narrative threads in a story perfect for book lovers and soul searchers alike. Kaag’s lively prose, acute self-examination, unfolding romance, and instructive history of philosophy as a discipline make for a surprisingly absorbing book.” Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“A unique combination of memoir and the history of American philosophy that is a joy to read.” Library Journal

“This is philosophy not as mere academic concepts but as lived experience.” Booklist

Awards

  • Kirkus Reviews Pick
  • New York Times   Bestseller
  • NPR Best Book
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