Eric

Even with two "I" in the title, I did not expect this book to be such and egocentric piece of writing. The entire book is all about countless "I", "me" and "my". It is well written but provides no interesting information about running. Also, the author seemed slightly depressed.

I read this book twice in a row to absorb the depth of what Tolle was trying to convey. I woke up two weeks later with amounted to a spiritual hangover, having had a holy war with my own ego.

I realized that I could not live in this sate of egoless ever present consciousness. This may be possible for an introverted middle aged man without children and battling depression but for a parent with three young children, it is not a realistic endeavor, especially when your attention is mostly toward others and when you need to plan the daily activities of four or five people.
I much prefer the Book of Secrets by Deepak Chopra. He treats the ego has a integral part of our human self, not as an enemy that has to be suppressed into nothingness. According to Chopra, spirituality is a layered process, not a quick (and unlikely) fix to all human pathologies.

Eckhart Tolle has my admiration for making us aware of the nature of the human ego and for reminding us to live in the present but like any good thing, it has to be done with a certain measure. Brought too far, these teachings defeat their purpose.

If it wasn't for the implicit violence toward women I would just feel sorry for this guy. He can be funny for a little while - if you like self-deprecatory or toilet humor - but down the road he has become so used to telling brutal jokes about women that he appears to have become desensitized, something that hopefully will not happen to his listeners. Try David Sedaris instead.

If any story can be called a masterpiece, this one deserves the title. Every word of the story has meaning, every phrase crafted and the whole is more haunting and disturbing than anything I have ever read or listened to. Ultimately, I think I have become a better person for listening to this (even after seeing the movie)

Open your mind and prepare to be changed.

I only occasionnally read science fiction books and this one will not make me read the genre more often. Not a bad book but it seems that is was overly stretched and would make a better material for a short novel.