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Everything Is F*cked
- A Book About Hope
- Narrated by: Mark Manson
- Length: 7 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: Literature & Fiction, Humour & Satire
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Publisher's Summary
From the author of the international mega-best-seller The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F*ck comes a counterintuitive guide to the problems of hope.
We live in an interesting time. Materially, everything is the best it’s ever been - we are freer, healthier, and wealthier than any people in human history. Yet, somehow everything seems to be irreparably and horribly f*cked - the planet is warming, governments are failing, economies are collapsing, and everyone is perpetually offended on Twitter. At this moment in history, when we have access to technology, education, and communication our ancestors couldn’t even dream of, so many of us come back to an overriding feeling of hopelessness.
What’s going on? If anyone can put a name to our current malaise and help fix it, it’s Mark Manson. In 2016, Manson published The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F*ck, a book that brilliantly gave shape to the ever-present, low-level hum of anxiety that permeates modern living. He showed us that technology had made it too easy to care about the wrong things, that our culture had convinced us that the world owed us something when it didn’t - and worst of all, that our modern and maddening urge to always find happiness only served to make us unhappier. Instead, the “subtle art” of that title turned out to be a bold challenge: to choose your struggle; to narrow and focus and find the pain you want to sustain. The result was a book that became an international phenomenon, selling millions of copies worldwide while becoming the number-one best seller in 13 different countries.
Now, in Everthing Is F*cked, Manson turns his gaze from the inevitable flaws within each individual self to the endless calamities taking place in the world around us. Drawing from the pool of psychological research on these topics, as well as the timeless wisdom of philosophers such as Plato, Nietzsche, and Tom Waits, he dissects religion and politics and the uncomfortable ways they have come to resemble one another. He looks at our relationships with money, entertainment, and the internet, and how too much of a good thing can psychologically eat us alive. He openly defies our definitions of faith, happiness, freedom - and even of hope itself.
With his usual mix of erudition and where-the-f*ck-did-that-come-from humor, Manson takes us by the collar and challenges us to be more honest with ourselves and connected with the world in ways we probably haven’t considered before. It’s another counterintuitive romp through the pain in our hearts and the stress of our soul. One of the great modern writers has produced another book that will set the agenda for years to come.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
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What listeners say about Everything Is F*cked
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Stephen Kong
- 2019-11-08
This book made me feel hopeless about everything..
I loved the first book, and rated it 5 stars, so I immediately bought this book expecting the same level of sarcasm and honesty. Firstly, the previous narration was much better. Mark's real voice takes time getting used to. I personally found his voice annoying as hell, but that's probably just my algorithm associating his voice with someone from my past (bias) who I found annoying. anyways, the book is interesting and had some good points, but it leaves you feeling absolutely depressed about the future. it's a book about hope that leaves you feeling hopeless about the future of everything. if you feel like being depressed after listening, then go ahead and give it a shot.
12 people found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 2019-08-06
Self help readers hate this one weird old tip
Want something more in life? Do you want to live a happy life filled with sex, money, pleasure, and freedom?
If you do, this is the book for you. Not because it'll help you get it, but because it'll help you get something much more important.
Let's get one thing clear: This is not a self help book. This is a book about philosophy, a book about our world, and a book that has less bullshit than what most of us are used to.
Let's get another thing straight. This book is probably going to piss off a lot of people. It breaks down and shines a light of Truth in things like religion, political parties, and internet marketing. That's a lot of people and a lot of money that relies on you not knowing what you're really buying. That's also a lot of people who has long had their identifies, and then having these identities challenged.
But this is an important book. This is a book you should read. This is a book that you should read if you don't like to suffer, not because it'll tell you how not to suffer, but because it'll teach you why you should. Why it's important. Why it'll make you not necessarily happier in the long run, but more importantly, why it'll make you less unhappy.
Read this book. And then read it again. I know I'm about to.
9 people found this helpful
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- 101
- 2019-05-31
Dismissive, Depressing & Lacking in Insight
As a huge fan of The Sublet Art of Not Giving a F*ck I was pretty disappointed with this book. It doesn’t feature any of the insightful information that the previous book was so rich in.
The book seams to lack cohesion, and uniformity of subject matter, and honestly at times it feels like the Author is just taking the p*ss, so to speak. His overall tone sucks, and it just made me want to slap him.
It sounds like this book was something of an existential crisis for the writer, where he behaves poorly, lashes out against anyone and everything he perceives to be ‘stupid’—which may as well be everything as far as Mark’s concerned.
I got virtually nothing of value out of this book, which is stunning considering how meaningful his previous work has been to me.
The whole book boils down to: politics bad, religion bad, pain good, and the robots are coming for us... It’s depressing, it’s reductionist, and it is a damn shame that this is what Mark thought was worth devoting his time to.
19 people found this helpful
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- Alonso
- 2019-05-15
Meh
I feel like the book started off well and then somewhere halfway he kind of went off on a tangent and I didnt care for it. Im glad hes reqd Yuval Hararis 'Sapiens' but I felt offended when he basically rephrased what Yuval said to add on to his text. ill stick with Gary Bishop moving forward. The beginning was nice tho.
16 people found this helpful
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- Lezismore
- 2019-08-08
Disappointing
Incredibly disappointing work - dismissive, incoherent and condescending. It’s a book about nothing and would not recommend anyone waste their time on this.
9 people found this helpful
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- Braden
- 2019-05-14
Mark Manson does it again! Couldn not put it down.
Mark Manson does it again! Couldn not put it down and it kept me interested the entire time
4 people found this helpful
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- Rowen Kazmer
- 2019-05-22
I had high hopes for this book.
I found this book scattered, not cohesive, negative and mostly boring. It had a few interesting facts but I really didn't learn much and struggled to even finish the book. Quite dissatisfied.
8 people found this helpful
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- Anonymous User
- 2020-02-05
Amazing book, great listen!
I received his other book (The subtle art of not giving a f*ck) as a gift which I genuinely enjoyed reading so I decided to get this book as an audio book this time.
I’m so glad Mark Manson decided to read this himself and it was a great voice to listen to, great content which got delivered properly!!
Simply amazing book, easy listen and highly recommend both of good books in any format, lots to learn and lots to think about once you’re done with them! Well done!
3 people found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 2021-01-08
Brilliant
Informative, inspiring, and down to earth. Just brilliant. Highly recommend this to everyone if you're going through change or looking for change.
2 people found this helpful
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- Jacqueline LaBlonde
- 2020-12-23
PRETTY GOOD
so far this is my third book from this author that I've listened to. let's see if I can remember the other two books .. My favourite Love is not enough.. followed by a The Subtle art of giving a f*** and this is my third in theline. it's got some interesting insights. I enjoy his style of writing. I find it very entertaining, comedic and Light, regardless of topic.
2 people found this helpful
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- Brian Sachetta
- 2020-09-30
I love Manson, but read his other books instead
I’ve been a huge Mark Manson fan for almost six years. When I first read “Models,” I was floored. A couple of years later, when he released “The Subtle Art…” I was also pretty blown away. I just love his writing style, personality, and humor; I find him to be extremely relatable and effective.
I actually first read this one, in print, the day it came out. My first pass through the book left me disappointed. All the same Manson trademarks (the humor, the swears, the seemingly strange references) were there, but the helpfulness and positivity were not. At the time, this book about hope seemed like anything but. As such, I was quite let down.
That was 18 or so months ago. As we all do, I’ve changed and learned some things in the last year and a half, so I was curious to go back and see if I now saw this book in a different light. I grabbed the audio version to move through it quicker. Unfortunately, after listening, I felt pretty much the same way I did the first time around. Here’s why.
Though the book is extremely well-written, well-paced, well-cited, and clever, it’s the definition of a bait and switch. Manson lures the reader in with a catchy title and suggests that, although the world seems fractured, hope will save us. If you get all the way to the end, however, you’ll find that that’s actually the complete opposite of his argument.
In fact, Manson’s true argument here is that hope is flawed and dangerous. It’s what led to all the war, struggle, and destruction over the course of human history. Moreover, he says that we should not hope, ever — we should instead just be better. This is where I think his argument collapses upon itself and loses me. Here’s what I mean by that.
We often say that money is the root of all evil. But money is just a tool. So is hope. Neither one has any inherent goodness or badness — it’s all in what we make of each one. When we use hope destructively, it can lead to cheating, corruption, and war. But when we use it in a positive fashion, it can lead to prosperity, togetherness, and inspiration.
This is where I think Manson gets it wrong. Rather than just saying, “Hey, hope can be bad, so watch out,” he casts it as all bad, which, in my mind, is incorrect. This leads to an overall, pervasive feeling of pessimism throughout the manuscript, in spite of some of his other solid arguments along the way.
That leads me to another thing I disliked about this book — that dark tone. Manson, in this book’s early pages, says that this is not a work based around nihilism. But after reading it twice, it’s clear that it is. Could a book that isn’t about nihilism really end by saying that we are nothing and never were anything? At least in my mind, I don’t think so.
Of course, as a huge Manson fan, the expectations were super high, and it can be tough to live up to those expectations. Regardless of that fact, however, I feel like Manson blew it with this one. It could’ve been SO good. He could’ve continued his “The Subtle Art…” success by offering people some form of peace and clarity here. Instead, however, he leaves the reader wondering what the heck to think and what in the world just happened.
So, in sum: if you like Manson’s style, you’ll still find parts of this one that you enjoy. After all, he’s clearly a very smart person and a great writer, and that shows here. But, on the whole, if you’re looking for a dash of positivity, even usefulness, as many of us found in his previous books, you won’t find it here. That said, I still highly recommend his other books instead.
Mark, if you’re somehow reading this, know that I still love your work, overall. Just, for the love of all things holy, please lighten things up a bit next time.
-Brian Sachetta
Author of “Get Out of Your Head”
43 people found this helpful
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- Stephanie Peterson
- 2019-06-14
Masterful writing, but stick to writing
The content and narrative of this book is fantastic! Just like it’s predecessor..... However, after listening to the Subtle Art, it just didn’t hold up from a performance standpoint. My only wish is that Mark Manson had chosen to let the same person narrate this version for him again, instead of doing it himself.
38 people found this helpful
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- MommaJ
- 2019-05-31
Good content, bad delivery
The book is good. I simply cannot listen to Mark Manson’s narration. I was left longing for the narrator from his previous book. Just too monotone for my adhd brain to stick with it. I needed the engagement of an expressive voice. Couldn’t even make it halfway through.
79 people found this helpful
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- Log Jammin
- 2019-05-17
5 star Philosophical soft-porn for the masses.
Read and masterfully delivered by the author, Manson constructs an easily digestible accessible philosophical jaunt through clever interpretations of Nietzsche and Kant as well as the Stoics.
Manson's path begins with his scribbling - in tiny print - The Uncomfortable Truth (essentially, that no matter how much we distract ourselves, the human condition is meaningless) on coffee cups for unsuspecting chain store customers, leads through a step-by-step "As Seen On TV" tutorial to create your very own religion, inevitably brings the reader to a conclusion that it's not because everything is f#cked that we need hope rather it's hope that needs everything to be f#cked, then explains how Edward Bernays channeled this truth with his Uncle Sigmund's conclusions to manipulate and convince the masses of their #fakefreedom while creating what is now the modern advertising economy.
Manson finally suggests that, “Instead of looking for hope, try this. Don’t hope. Don’t despair, either. In fact, don’t deign to believe you know anything...Don’t hope for better, just be better. Be something better. Be more compassionate, more resilient, more humble, more disciplined...— be a better human.”
My Audible experience was as enjoyable as Manson's previous entry into the pantheon of anti self-help self-help books and i found myself LLOL'ing (legitimately LOL'ing) enough to consider this work, much like life, a dramedy.
44 people found this helpful
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- Noor A.
- 2021-01-08
Creative but Lacks in Thought
TLDR: This book is thought provoking and creative, with very good final chapters on happiness and suffering. Manson brings up well researched examples, philosophers, and studies. At the same time that also made the book read like a foul mouthed book report at times.
Overall though, the book presents such basic arguments about heavy topics, like religion, science, without the nuance needed.
As far as religion goes, the book doesn’t make the distinction between theological religious truths and cultural influences/corruption on religious practices. If a religious leader shames you for asking questions about religion, that’s not right. But that’s not evidence that the religion itself is faulty. True believers welcome questions.
There are also many qualities about religion that he mentioned, which are true: religion can be a source of hope, religion can provide relief from the “uncomfortable truth” (existential nothingness I’m assuming). But that doesn’t mean that religion is pacifying us or ignoring these issues.
As far as science goes, he makes it seem like science improved the world and created progress, whereas religion left people stuck. Science did improve many things in the world. But science, evidence, and empirical truths are not the whole picture. It’s not like science is at odds with religion. Plus the book totally ignores that yes while there was a lull in intellectual life in Europe during the Middle Ages, Islamic society was thriving intellectually in mathematics, science, and medicine. Islam even encourages the pursuit of knowledge…
Last example/rant, the book makes this basic insinuation that the world used to be terrible but now it’s not, but we’re still gonna be dissatisfied. I get the truth in this, but he points out modern examples of the “blue dot effect” such as political extremists (right and left). But he doesn’t differentiate the extreme from legitimate social justice movements. Yes as humans we will always be at a level “7” happiness, and yes as humans, pain is constant. But injustice is still never acceptable. Injustice is not simply pain, but it is a perversion of natural law.
Anyway, thank you for coming to my Ted talk.
5 people found this helpful
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- Mk90
- 2019-05-16
Narrator is lacking.
I enjoyed Subtle Art alot due to pacing, this narrator lacks the charm and character.
31 people found this helpful
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- Lindsay S. Nixon
- 2019-05-16
a string of ranty blog posts w/ a few good points
This isn't a "book" in my opinion. It's more of a collection of essays and ranty "blog posts" with maybe 1 or 2 academic-ish articles for HuffPo.
There are some parts of the 'book' that were well researched, provided excellent points and I thought to myself "oh wow" and "I'm going to have to read this again!!!" (30%) the rest was odd and didn't belong, despite Manson's best efforts to make it all fit. I feel like I read a string of ranty blog posts...
The writing also oscillates between deplorable to somewhat academic.
There are times where it reads like a polished, academic book (about 20%) but more often it is ranty blogging with slang like "Cray cray" and vulgar examples that Manson seems to slip in for shock value (except it doesn't work).
Manson is also a terrible narrator. His voice is bleh, but more alarming: he can't properly read his own writing--he can't deliver his own jokes and punchlines (!) It comes out awkward and unnatural-- making his "cray cray" and other slang even more distracting/weird.
41 people found this helpful
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- Kallee1987
- 2019-05-20
Not as entertaining as the first
Not nearly as enjoyable as the first to listen to but was still worth the read. I guess being less entertaining is part of the point of the book in light of the topic of distraction.
9 people found this helpful
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- jason newsom
- 2019-05-17
So disappointed!
I really liked his last book a lot. I was hoping this one would be as good. It is not even close! I couldn’t really decipher an actual point. It was just a lot of rambling, in my opinion. I really didn’t care for the narration either. The narrator for the last book was perfect.
21 people found this helpful
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- notvafter11
- 2019-12-10
NOT a Self Help Book
In retrospect, I feel like an idiot for thinking this was a self help book. How could a book called "Everything is Fucked" be a self help book? It's the opposite of a self help book, and if you're already depressed thinking this IS a self help book, you've made a terrible choice. Granted, some of the philosophy discussed went way over my head .I feel like maybe that's how I would characterize this book, a depressing look at human existence and philosophy. Only now, I am reminded that my life won't really matter. And I feel stupid for believing in what I believe. Get the summary guide first if you have questions about whether or not this book is for you.
3 people found this helpful
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- bengebara k.
- 2019-05-23
Read this if you're confused
First, I want to say that I am a big fan/consumer of Mark's content; it helped me understand so many things about life, how to behave, how to react, etc. I consider his blog articles + 2 previous books like an experienced big brother talking to me about all the touchy subjects you can't talk about with your parents or that your parents never talked to you about. (Yes I'm still a college student, trying to figure things out).
This book honestly holds enormous value and touches on so many subjects from basic philosophy to marketing to psychology. It's kind of a quick "throwback" to human history and at the same time a hypothetical projection into the future of our human race. However:
1. I already mentioned that I'm a college student, a 23 years old looking for useful info, advice, help, hope... Mark was my go-to for this kind of info, and he never deceived, except this time! If you're looking for help or guidance for your life, I don't think you'll find it here; you might even feel a lot worse after reading this book. For more practical advice on how to perform better in your life, I recommend: "The subtle art of not giving a fuck" by the same author, you'll find all the help you need there.
2. I know that Mark intended to be misguiding in the book's title, but what for? I mean except the tiny part at the very end where he speaks about "hope" and how we should be better humans without it, the book is overall kind of dark. It claims to combat nihilism but, if you think about it, and you will, it somehow promotes it.
My advice here, for young and inexperienced people like me reading this, would be: Chill my friend, life doesn't need to be this complicated, and it certainly isn't except when you want it to be. You can be a better person, a better human being without processing all this info about the universe and history and Socrates and Plato and the f*****g never-ending longlist of things this book is trying to talk about (sorry Mark).
3. YES, we should always seek to get out of our comfort zones, go out there, and challenge our beliefs, test them, upgrade and improve them. Why not insist more on that instead of telling people to expect machines to become our gods and data our spirituality... Instead of disqualifying everything our human race has built its history upon (like Nietzche did, and btw lost his mind by the end of his life) let's work with what we already have, let's work on what we already are, and HOPEfully, become better without losing our minds or souls in the process. Again, for young and inexperienced people like me, my advice is: If you believe in something, don't give up on it, it's part of who you are! If you feel that being a Muslim/Christian/whatever makes you a better human being, the kind of human being you aspire to be, don't ever give up on that! If you feel that converting into something else is what will make you a better person, do that! And remember: you know nothing, Jon Snow! (A.K.A. Mark Manson, Kant, Nietzche, Freud, Bernays, etc.) They're all just trying to understand this weird world a little bit more, and so do you.
Side note: Emmanuel Kant also argues that raising questions about the legitimacy of the state, its law or its intellectual basis is tantamount to sedition, and could be punished by death – even if there was no violence or incitement to violence or rebellion. Sorry Mark, but if this book came out under Kant's ruling, you'd be dead by now, we don't want that, we need you!
Overall, I would advise this book for people who (relatively) think they have everything figured out and want a little uncertainty to grow. I would also recommend this book for people who believe our systems are perfect or infallible: Reading this will give you more perspective, it will question your beliefs, it will filter your convictions, It will either make you want to be sucked into a black hole and forget you ever existed, OR, make you realize you're already there and help you get out!
You've been warned!
2 people found this helpful
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- Faure
- 2021-06-13
Oh god the cringe.
I enjoyed the previous book, "the subtle art of not giving a fuck", because the author exposed an interesting personal life philosophy.
In this one, the author start talking about more general things, that he seems to really not understand. It's extremely cringe to hear him play the enlightened centrist, while arguing with a very confident tone his 6th grader political opinions, such as "all politicians are corrupt, amiright?"
The author also demonstrates huge holes and some common misconceptions in his knowledge of history, sociology and philosophy. No wonder halfway throught the book the only philosopher quoted is Nietszche.
This is disappointing.
1 person found this helpful
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- Pierre Buteau
- 2020-04-29
A philosophical journey!
Very interesting approach and very philosophical, hence the note. Not to be mean or anything, but this book is a bit less approachable than the Subtle Art. Nevertheless, I will definitely let in sink for a bit, and listen to it again later.
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- Anonymous User
- 2020-02-16
not as good as the subtle art
bit lengthy in places. interesting. not a must read like the subtle art. excellent blog