This was a bit too verbose for me, I'm afraid. There were some good points in here, although I think they are probably common knowledge anyway and some that I really couldn't get to grips with. It was a bit of a struggle.

I tried. I really tried. I love self-help but I'm into rule two and I don't know what's going on anymore. Men are order and women are chaos? 543 (feels like it) pages waffling on about the Bible to no obvious purpose? Something something nudity? Nope, I'm out.

I could not finish this book so I will never know what the twelve rules are... the rules I did get left me feeling irritated, patronised and frustrated. Nothing much new in what I did read but the whole tone of the writing left me cold. And the emphasis on cod science and religion didn't reassure me in the slightest.

In fairness I'm guessing I may not be the target audience for this book given the voice Mr Peterson has chosen to write in.

I was given a free copy of this book by Netgalley in return for an honest review.

This is rare for me but I didn't really enjoy this book. It was patronising poorly written.

Lumbering 'common sense' tract that relies heavily on selective science and unquestioned religion. Patronising and hard to read. Did not finish.

This book really wasn’t for me. Perhaps the description I read just wasn’t quite accurate enough, but I wasn’t expecting it to be full of biblical references and judgement, and I really think that ought to be made clearer in the blurb. I couldn’t connect with it at all and the section on disciplining children sat very uneasily with me. I can see from other reviews that a lot of people have enjoyed the book, but it really wasn’t for me.

Why say 10 words when you can say 10,000 seems to be the mantra of Jordan Peterson. This book reads like an endless stream of consciousness being written down with no consistent message and many inconsistencies. His endless quoting from and using of scripture from the Bible is just offensive at times. The guy doesn't even profess to be a Christian but chose Christianity to base this book on as it is the best system of 'good and evil' he can find. Or, said sceptically, thought it would help sell his book.

According to Peterson, Hitler and Stalin were bad people due to having inadequate mothers. "Hitler's mother gave birth to Hitler and Stalin's mother gave birth to Stalin. Was something amiss in their crucial relationships? It seems likely". Yes it really does say that and a load of similarly offensive passages to women, children, men. I have skim read it and regret the time I spent doing that.

As for the kids that he babysat and bullied - l can hardly believe that he admits what he did, let alone tells the world how he behaved.

With thanks to NetGalley and Penguin UK for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I found it hard to read as all dates/numerals were omitted and also most 'ff' combinations so 'off' read as 'o','difference' as 'di erence', etc.

I rarely abandon a book but this one was just really bad. The writing is needlessly pointlessly dense and florid but the author just repeats himself over and over again. He also refers to the Bible throughout as though that is the only story or myth he could use which I found alienating. He’s also super into simplistic gender dynamics, his points are simple and obvious, there is nothing in this book to recommend it. Maybe if you’re looking for a literary criticism of the bible.

I found this book heavy going. Not for the faint hearted.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Jordan B. Peterson for the copy of this book. I agreed to give my unbiased opinion voluntarily.

Lobsters, bible, god; no thanks, I was immediately put off. I tried to skim to see what the actual "rules" were but as my copy was free from NetGalley, it was a proof edition and did not have an index, so I could not find them amongst the waffly preaching. One of the reviewers gave a summary of them so I read that instead! I guess it just boils down to be a better person, and although many of the criticisms of modern day society may be valid, this is was not readable for me. Some of the reviewers sound like cult followers. Press delete.

I am afraid the book did not work for me at all. The barrage of analogies made me constantly lose the thread of the argument being made ;/

These type of books aren't for everyone and sadly 12 rules for life wasn't for me. Worth a try if you're looking for chaos to become order in your life.

Thinking about how to begin a review of such a challenging and powerful book I determined not to cloud my thoughts by looking at any other reviews, although I had been aware of some recent coverage of an interview on UK’s Channel 4 TV news that had seemingly sparked some controversy. In the absence of prior knowledge I would expect Professor Jordan Peterson’s book to produce a full spectrum of reviews, but with a probable tendency for there to be a somewhat bipolar distribution, with reviewers finding either much to praise or much to criticise, since this is a book that will provoke and challenge what are often powerfully held beliefs, and the lazy reader (or the reader with a closed mind) will simply discount views that don’t accord with their politics or wider world view.

If you are reading this after you have read the book I am unlikely to change your mind, but - if you haven’t yet read it - I would urge you to pause before internally whooping with delight as an opinion is apparently endorsed or, conversely, discounting Professor Peterson’s ideas simply because they run counter to your most deeply-held convictions. Your enjoyment and benefit from reading this book will, instead, be increased dramatically if a priori assumptions are left behind and the evidence adduced by Professor Peterson in support of his carefully argued positions is carefully scrutinised against the historical record and the events reported daily across the written and broadcast media. Whilst the read-across from evidenced positions to the 12 rules is not always as explicit as some readers may like, the internal consistency is generally secure throughout.

In particular, the exploratory journey around the background to the rule in each chapter added significant benefit and context to the simply stated rules. However, this reader felt strongly that
the book would have benefited - and the 12 rules for life would have been more accessible - if there had been a rather more ruthless editing of the text. In rather too many places the trees were so thickly planted - and described in loving detail - that the woods and forests were indeed lost from sight.

Professor Peterson’s tendency to illustrate points and arguments with extracts from the Bible will also irritate some readers, although a careful reading will reveal that he is generally citing the stories to illustrate wider ideas and exemplify particular behaviours rather than to promote a specifically Judeo-Christian world-view. On balance, though, the decision to include so much from this source may be a mistake in terms of engaging the widest possible audience. Nevertheless this is a masterwork from a leader in his field. Love Professor Peterson or hate him, his arguments are carefully set out, well-evidenced and (crucially) relevant and applicable to both individual lives and wider society. Not a light read by any means, and - inevitably - some positions are less secure and well-argued than others, but a great antidote to the mindless groupthink that threatens to overwhelm.

Highly recommended.

I am in two (or more) minds about this one:

A provocative and outspoken promoter of free speech on campuses, confronter of victim-hood culture and identity politics - Peterson deploys the same conversational style here, as in his popular internet lectures. Research derived from evolutionary psychology, neuroscience, anthropology, archetypes of myth and religion influence his analysis of why things fall apart in human societies – and on which he bases his recommendations. Peterson has a great way of grabbing the reader's attention: I particularly enjoyed the chapter on the hierarchy systems found in all living creatures (and why it is important to stand tall! ) although his interpretations based on biblical stories seem far more contentious as solutions for 21st century civilisations. None the less, the twelve rules make for a thought provoking and debate-worthy contribution to the eternal question of how to live well.

Everyone should read this book and would also recommend watching some of Dr Peterson's lectures. His 12 rules for life are so much more than a self help book, they are a true guide to living life well and reaching your potential, inspiring the reader to never stop learning and growing.

Combining psychology with literature, religion and a huge dose of common sense - he is one of the most important and intelligent voices of today, and also the most sincere.

I was looking forward to this but found it to be full of opinion and lacking in evidence or facts. I expect a physcologist to be able to support his assertions with appropriate evidence, but the best we get here is anecdotal. Also the formatting of the text in this proof is quite bad- particularly in the chapter about disciplining children there are lots of omissions so that some of the meaning is lost.