Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Unavailable
    The Road to Character
    Unavailable
    The Road to Character
    Unavailable
    The Road to Character
    Audiobook12 hours

    The Road to Character

    Published by Penguin Random House Audio

    Narrated by Arthur Morey

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • David Brooks challenges us to rebalance the scales between the focus on external success—“résumé virtues”—and our core principles.

    NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE ECONOMIST

    With the wisdom, humor, curiosity, and sharp insights that have brought millions of readers to his New York Times column and his previous bestsellers, David Brooks has consistently illuminated our daily lives in surprising and original ways. In The Social Animal, he explored the neuroscience of human connection and how we can flourish together. Now, in The Road to Character, he focuses on the deeper values that should inform our lives.

    Looking to some of the world’s greatest thinkers and inspiring leaders, Brooks explores how, through internal struggle and a sense of their own limitations, they have built a strong inner character. Labor activist Frances Perkins understood the need to suppress parts of herself so that she could be an instrument in a larger cause. Dwight Eisenhower organized his life not around impulsive self-expression but considered self-restraint. Dorothy Day, a devout Catholic convert and champion of the poor, learned as a young woman the vocabulary of simplicity and surrender. Civil rights pioneers A. Philip Randolph and Bayard Rustin learned reticence and the logic of self-discipline, the need to distrust oneself even while waging a noble crusade.

    Blending psychology, politics, spirituality, and confessional, The Road to Character provides an opportunity for us to rethink our priorities, and strive to build rich inner lives marked by humility and moral depth.

    “Joy,” David Brooks writes, “is a byproduct experienced by people who are aiming for something else. But it comes.”

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateApr 14, 2015
    ISBN9780553551877
    Unavailable
    The Road to Character

    Related to The Road to Character

    Related audiobooks

    Social Science For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      The Wisdom of David J. Theroux (1949–2022)

      Jul 18, 2022

      Like you, I was deeply saddened to learn of David Theroux’s death on April 23, 2022. It is likely that many readers of The Independent Review knew Theroux—founder and long-time president of the Independent Institute—far longer and far better than I d

      7 min read

    • Article

      Sad At Pastor’s Comments

      Jan 10, 2024

      THIS letter has particular relevance to Pastor Bobby Pukreesamy who was a guest speaker at a congregation of a church in Queensburgh, in December last year. Nature has produced many races with diverse traditions that embrace beliefs and practices wit

      1 min read

    • Article

      What Does 'Community' Mean?

      Jul 3, 2017

      What Does 'Community' Mean?
      3 min read

    • Article

      The Choice Is Ours

      Mar 4, 2024

      In December 1866, mathematician Mary Boole wrote to Charles Darwin: Do you consider the holding of your Theory of Natural Selection, in its fullest & most unreserved sense, to be inconsistent,—I do not say with any particular scheme of Theological do

      3 min read

    • Article

      Keys To Historic Leadership

      Mar 16, 2021

      In 1927, my German grandmother was born in an orphanage 15 kilometers east of Munich in the small market town of Kirchseeon. With blond hair and blue eyes, she was classified as Aryan, which her nation’s soon-to-be chancellor, Adolf Hitler, would dec

      2 min read

    • Article

      The Fame Game

      Jun 30, 2023

      What do a 41-minute sex tape featuring a little-known personal stylist and a sombre self-portrait in oils by the Renaissance polymath Albrecht Dürer have in common? According to a compelling new study of the ways in which we see ourselves and attempt

      2 min read

    • Article

      The Accidental Guru

      Jan 26, 2024

      The Accidental Guru
      10 min read

    • Article

      Biblical Proportions

      Aug 1, 2020

      Biblical Proportions
      10 min read

    • Article

      Higher Learning

      Nov 29, 2019

      Higher Learning
      2 min read

    Reviews for The Road to Character

    3.5/5

    158 ratings16 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 5/5
      A well reasoned and classical look at the maturing of ndividuals. Brooks used classical thought and the examples of lives of prominant individuals over the last 300 years to reveal that oftentimes living for something makes the adult more than living for oneself. Sometimes his summaries seemed off but his portrayals of individuals such as Day and Johnson hit hom.
    • 2/5
      Too many stories of people I could not relate to even if the topic is really interesting
    • 2/5
      I thought I added this three days ago, but I guess not. Anyway, have you ever seen a movie trailer that made you want to see the movie? Only to be sadly disappointed when it turned out to be quite bad? The deceiving trailer either had all the best jokes or action...sigh. I heard a snippet of a review on NPR which grabbed my attention when it quoted Brooks's opening anecdote about how America reacted at the end of WWII compared to now, and with more of the "now" with respect to sports celebrations being all about the "me" as an indicator of today gone wrong. That was the teaser that contained pretty much everything good about this book.

      I liked the story in the first chapter because it stuck a chord, but Brooks lost me in the second chapter with:Today the word "sin" has lost its power and awesome intensity.
      What the hell? I can't even think about dignifying that nonsense with a rebuttal, but he takes it even further with Furthermore, the concept of sin is necessary because it is radically true.
      Still shaking my head. And it goes downhill from there. It's clear that Brooks has misplaced adoration in his chosen heroes. And he has an interesting moving goal post - a chapter on Eisenhower as virtuous but calling him out for being callous to his ... mistress? Regardless of the veracity of the claims, Brooks did not qualify the term, so must have believed it true and didn't pause to observe the hypocrisy of trumpeting Ike given the presumption of infidelity. Brooks culled some good and some horrific examples of the "virtues" he adores here (on the horrific side, George C. Marshall not turning in his classmates despite them rushing him to urgent medical attention following an extreme hazing incident gone wrong.)

      Brooks has distorted ideals, but I am assuming his religious perspective peppered throughout the book explains some of them. There are a few good points to take from this, which saves it from one star. But few, which is disappointing, and I wish I'd read something else.
    • 4/5
      Provides a candidate moral vocabulary that Brooks finds lacking (or at least backgrounded) in our present time. He allows the many character sketches to speak for themselves without overlaying much opinionated preaching. A well-written and inspirational read.
    • 4/5
      Building character, like life itself, is a journey, and we get that point with the title of the David Brooks book "The Road to Character." We may be born with a certain personality, but not with character. That's something that takes a lifetime to develop, assuming we even bother to try.Brooks studies character building by studying the lives of a variety of men and women who made more effort to develop character than most of us do. They never became perfect people, but all were better later in their lives than earlier. Dorothy Day and Augustine were sexual libertines in their youth. Both later became devoted to Christian service. Dwight Eisenhower struggled with a terrible temper. Thanks to the influence of his mother and his military training, he learned to control it to become both the supreme Allied commander in World War II and the president of the United States. Frances Perkins fought to subdue her own wants and needs to better serve others.Character building has become an old-fashioned concept, which is why younger readers may not be drawn to this book. With all the emphasis on self-esteem today, children are inclined to believe they already have it made. Why work to improve when you are already perfect? Brooks says that 53 percent of all students now get A's. Some graduating classes have a half dozen valedictorians or more. If high school is easy, why not the rest of life? And if virtue is relative and what's right for you is not necessarily right for me, then why work to become more virtuous?Brooks contrasts Johnny Unitas with Joe Namath. Both were great NFL quarterbacks from the same region of Pennsylvania, yet their concepts of character were radically different. Unitas believed in working hard and keeping a low profile. Namath believed in having fun and showing off. Brooks sees them as symbols of their respective generations, Even though both men played in Super Bowl III, we tend to associate Unitas with the 1950s and Namath with the 1960s, when because of Vietnam and a lot of other factors, social change was rampant. Yet Brooks suggests it was actually the postwar Unitas generation, sometimes called the Greatest Generation, that actually brought about the change in how people view character. After years of Depression and war, this generation focused on material success, building big homes in the suburbs and acquiring nice things. Developing character became a minor issue, then no issue at all in many homes and schools.Brooks says there are "resume virtues" and "eulogy virtues." The first includes the kinds of things we brag about and use to get jobs and impress others. The second kind of virtue includes what might be said about us at our funerals, at the end of our life journeys. And this second kind of virtue is what makes character.
    • 4/5
      Excellent collection of short biographies used to illustrate a general path towards building character in an age that values external shows of success over internal growth (pics or it didn't happen).One star off for Brooks's slightly repetitive writing style. This works well on the audio, but it's a little tedious when reading the printed book. (I started with the audio and finished the hardcover.)
    • 4/5
      Albeit a bit preachy in spots, this modern-day [Profiles in Courage] was an enjoyable and enlightening read. Brooks impressed me during the 2016 election season by appearing as a "conservative" with a brain fully engaged and not merely an ideologue. I am glad to have read this.
    • 5/5
      This book wasn't quite what I was expecting. It was actually better than I thought. The Road to Character was full of historical trivia. The book stressed the importance of a full spiritual life, but it wasn't very preachy. Instead, it was very approachable. I loved the anecdotes about Dwight D. Eisenhower and A. Philip Randolph. As a resident of Duluth, it was also cool to hear about the life of Dorothy Day. The Catholic Worker's Movement is pretty big around here. Mr. Brooks had a very poetic writing style which felt both mature and grounded. It was a fast read. Five stars.
    • 4/5
      A thoughtful conservative's study of the way of humility.
    • 4/5
      I was intrigued by this book just reading the blurb. The mention of "Resume Values" vs. "Eulogy Values," grabbed me hook, line, and sinker.Seeing how much the definition of "character" has changed over the years, it is indeed a monumental task that David Brooks has undertaken in this book. Brooks uses great figures from history to illustrate his points and often quotes from their lives or works. This makes for some very colorful prose such as "Large angels take a long time unfolding their wings, but when they do they soar out of sight."We need to ask ourselves the tough questions like who we are and balance our resume lives and our eulogy lives. Then and only then can we attain joy; for joy is not something you can aim for it is a byproduct that comes when you are aiming for something else.Not an easy read by any means but worth reading.
    • 4/5
      This book has allowed me to learn about some amazing people that only thought about for a few fleeting moments up until now. I think the Big Me introduced in this book is a Big Problem and will take the advice in here to build my moral character.
    • 1/5
      I did not like this book AT ALL.
    • 4/5
      I really enjoyed David Brooks earlier books, and he tells a story well but....The Road to Character contains some interesting profiles of people that I do believe are fascinating, good research and social analysis, and some thoughtful observations, yet, there is a sense of whinging about the book that I found off-putting enough that I was often close to tossing the book across the room. I am glad I kept reading because Books' observations prove relavant to many things and keep cropping up in my thoughts. Besides whinging alone is not enough to discredit all the thoughtful work that went into this book.
    • 3/5
      Although I enjoyed this book, it was not at all what I expected. The author gives a lot of information about some historic people, to whom I believe he feels have what he feels is character. The emphasis seems to be more on positive character, and not on how individuals have either negative or positive character. When reading through in-between the lines, the underlying message obtained is that character is obtained through the series of one’s life events and the things that happen to them. My personal believe is certainly not much different in that the things that happen, the adversity we face, and the actions we take to overcome them are what build character. However people also have to know that an upbringing that supports this will and can make all the difference in the world however it is not the only thing that matters.
    • 4/5
      “I will be conquered; I will not capitulate.” That sounds like Samuel Beckett, but it’s actually Samuel Johnson. While Beckett wrestled with words and narrative structures, Johnson battled with physical limitations and inner demons. Both expressed something only a minor fraction of humanity can hope to attain.But this book isn’t about Beckett. It’s not even about Samuel Johnson, really. He’s one character, one human, throughout history who Brooks has snagged to put alongside his cast of mature, wise and morally-driven exemplars. It’s an appeal to our better, deeper, inner selves to reclaim the lexicon of what once made great persons great: sin, grace, demons. Not a call to re-embrace religion, but a reawakening to a language that can help define a more purposeful life; a shifting of emphasis from “I” to “we”, or, more properly, from “why me?” to “what should I do about this?” when presented with a challenge. An existence spent more on building a character of resolution and sinew and less on a string of accomplishments or rewards. A slowly growing soul, with a lifetime’s accretion of wisdom—heartbreaks and defeats turned toward a love of humanity and a deep calling—weaknesses become strengths. The end to a journey where a host of others can show up and expound on who you were. A bullet-pointed list on paper pales in comparison. It’s not the résumé, it’s the eulogy.Every section, every person in this book has its fascination—its lesson to impart. I, however, responded most deeply to the chapters “Love” (about Mary Anne Evans, a.k.a. George Eliot) and “Self-Examination” (about Samuel Johnson and Michel de Montaigne); maybe because they resonated with my own spirit and hinted at my own weaknesses. Passion is surely my Achilles’ heel and yet it’s my greatest strength. This book, though, has challenged me to truly conquer that weakness, to notice when it’s destructive and not constructive, and realize that it’s not so much about victory in each instance, but a constant vigilance against that destruction—and that it’s OK if it takes a lifetime to achieve. That gives me peace.When I’d heard David Brooks on Sam Harris’ podcast, “Waking Up”, I knew immediately that I’d buy this book. I knew that I’d devour it. I knew that it would have sticking bits on its way toward the bowels. I’m so grateful that it didn’t disappoint, but I’m even more grateful to be aware and active in reclaiming those lost words on our road to becoming greater characters, soulful and graceful and stumbling, and not fret over the dust on the shoes. “The person who successfully struggles against weakness and sin may or may not become rich and famous, but that person will become mature. Maturity is not based on talent or any of the mental or physical gifts that help you ace an IQ test or run fast or move gracefully. It is not comparative. It is earned not by being better than other people at something, but by being better than you used to be. It is earned by being dependable in times of testing, straight in times of temptation. Maturity does not glitter. It is not built on the traits that make people celebrities. A mature person possesses a settled unity of purpose. The mature person has moved from fragmentation to centeredness, has achieved a state in which the restlessness is over, the confusion about the meaning and purpose of life is calmed. The mature person can make decisions without relying on the negative and positive reactions from admirers or detractors because the mature person has steady criteria to determine what is right. That person has said a multitude of noes for the sake of a few overwhelming yeses.”
    • 5/5
      We all need to have our lives examined, even if it means that we have to take that road to character.

      1 person found this helpful