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Greenlights

Item 9780593139134
Sale price$30.00
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * MORE THAN 7 MILLION COPIES SOLD WORLDWIDE! Discover the life-changing memoir that has inspired millions of readers through the Academy Award-winning actor's unflinching honesty, unconventional wisdom, and lessons learned the hard way about living with greater satisfaction.

"The No. 1 celebrity memoir of the past 10 years."-USA Today

"McConaughey's book invites us to grapple with the lessons of his life as he did-and to see that the point was never to win, but to understand."-Mark Manson, author of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck

I've been in this life for fifty years, been trying to work out its riddle for forty-two, and been keeping diaries of clues to that riddle for the last thirty-five. Notes about successes and failures, joys and sorrows, things that made me marvel, and things that made me laugh out loud. How to be fair. How to have less stress. How to have fun. How to hurt people less. How to get hurt less. How to be a good man. How to have meaning in life. How to be more me.

Recently, I worked up the courage to sit down with those diaries. I found stories I experienced, lessons I learned and forgot, poems, prayers, prescriptions, beliefs about what matters, some great photographs, and a whole bunch of bumper stickers. I found a reliable theme, an approach to living that gave me more satisfaction, at the time, and still: If you know how, and when, to deal with life's challenges-how to get relative with the inevitable-you can enjoy a state of success I call "catching greenlights."

So I took a one-way ticket to the desert and wrote this book: an album, a record, a story of my life so far. This is fifty years of my sights and seens, felts and figured-outs, cools and shamefuls. Graces, truths, and beauties of brutality. Getting away withs, getting caughts, and getting wets while trying to dance between the raindrops.

Hopefully, it's medicine that tastes good, a couple of aspirin instead of the infirmary, a spaceship to Mars without needing your pilot's license, going to church without having to be born again, and laughing through the tears.

It's a love letter. To life.

It's also a guide to catching more greenlights-and to realizing that the yellows and reds eventually turn green too.

Good luck.

The short dust jacket included with this hardcover edition is an intentional design choice.

Overall rating: 4.5555553 / 5 from 9 reviews.

AI Generated Review Summary

Greenlights is a memoir by Matthew McConaughey that offers life lessons and reflections on living with greater satisfaction. It has been praised for its honesty, wisdom, and entertaining storytelling.

Summary topics

  • Book Quality (60%): A substantial number of customers appreciated the book, describing it as awesome, great, and thoroughly enjoyed.
  • Story Engagement (25%): A significant amount of customers expressed satisfaction with the story, describing it as entertaining, funny, and filled with invitations for the reader to reflect on their own life.

Review topics: ["speed","lines","book","story","mcconaughey","life","thoughts","memoir","reflection","humor","author","book of the year","manner","podcasts","voice","signs","narrator","copy","biography","soul","relationship"].

Review highlights

  • "A thoroughly enjoyable life story told with great self-reflection and humor." — NotoriousEAM
  • "Thoroughly enjoyed this book." — Beezer
  • "There are some crazy unbelievable stories along the way!" — Mrsjoylovesbooks

Reviews

"Alright, Alright, Alright!"

"“We are not here to tolerate our differences, we are here to accept them. We are not here to celebrate our sameness, we are here to salute our distinctions. We are not born into equal circumstances, or with equal abilities, but we should have equal opportunity. ” So, now and then, a book comes along that feels less like reading and more like sitting on a pier watching the sunset and listening to someone tell the wildest accounts of their life. Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey is exactly that kind of book. Part memoir, part life guide, this book is a mix of unforgiving charm, unexpected wisdom, and the kind of honesty that catches you off guard. The narrative is a refreshing departure from what you would expect from a celebrity. Truth be told, this book delivers something that is honestly unexpectedly inspiring. I didn’t agree with everything nor at times understood what it was that he was trying to say, but I did appreciate the sentiment of his words. Because at its very core, the book is a story about learning to trust detours, appreciate the pauses, and recognize that sometimes, the red lights turn green when we are ready to move forward. Perhaps one of the biggest lessons from McConaughey’s discussion is that “there's a way to catch and create greenlights for ourselves and others at the same time. ” A required 4-star read!"

— LinoB (4/5)

Exceeded All Expectations

"I’m not one to turn to celebrity memoirs but as McConaughey says (in a much saucier and more rhythmic manner) in the intro, this book is much more than that. Yes, he recounts life anecdotes, but they serve to inform the life lessons he’s sharing with us. Let’s just say this book was a greenlight."

— B&NCarlyR (5/5)

If you're a fan of his, you'll love it!

"If you're a fan of Matthew McConaughey's, you'll surely love his book. I read it simply because my bestie just gushed over it, but personally, I think he's a wee bit ""extra"". I suppose, however, that's what makes him so loveable to so many people. He included lots of over-the-top stories and things that make you go hmmm. . . but also lots of positivity with great life lessons too! If you choose to read it, I recommend the audio version for the full ""McConaughey experience"" that'll have you quoting ""Alright, alright, alright for weeks to come!"

— @mamasgottaread (3/5)

A wild look at Matthew McConaughey's life

"Alright, alright, alright! What a wild ride this book was. Greenlights is a motivational memoir like no other. Matthew shares stories of his upbringing in Texas, how he got started in acting (including his iconic role in Dazed and Confused), his rise in Hollywood fame, his Oscar-winning role, and becoming a husband and a father. There are some crazy unbelievable stories along the way! He also includes “bumper stickers” and “prescriptions” throughout that are pieces of advice or words of wisdom from his experiences. Some of them are like poems, others almost seem like rambling, but it all comes together into a very McConaughey package. I got this book as a Christmas gift, but I knew that I wanted to hear Matthew McConaughey’s words in his own very distinguishable voice, so I also bought the audiobook. While the physical books has photos you’ll want to see, listening to him talk was amazing. Although he reads the book exactly as written, it sounds like you’re sitting at his kitchen table in Austin, Texas, as he recalls moments in his life that lead to “Greenlights”. Matthew is an amazing storyteller. Keep on livin’ and hook ‘em horns."

— Mrsjoylovesbooks (4/5)

Honest and open life of Matthew

"Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey Wow what a story. Had attended an online podcast where he read a few pages of this book, and podcast was about the new Lincoln car, it's features and charities. For attending I did receive a free hardbound book of Green Lights. From the very beginning I went from scared to laughing out loud and repeated many times. Scary when his mother grabbed a knife and was going after the father, til he squeezed ketchup on her til she gave up. I found the episodes of various scenes to be very honest, soul searched and down right entertaining. At times I felt like I was on Saturday Night Live for a skit. Love the author narrating his own story, he emotions come through as he raises his voice in preaches and bumper sticker warning phrases. The speed of his voice really entrapped my attention also as I come from the northeast and we talk wicked fast. There is so much to this story and I love how he calls his mom at times and she doesn't go along with what he's telling her but then a few minutes later she calls and asks for a redo of their last conversation. Love the relationships he has and learned so much about his life in general. Have watched him in a few movies and can't wait to catch the others. Best first book of the year for me, will be one of my top picks. Some of the sentences are about 4 lines long, reminding me of 'Alice's restaurant' song with all the lyrics and very long lines, LOL So many connections, especially the movie in Newport, RI as I was there for court one day while they taped in the immediate area. So honest and open."

— Jbarr5 (5/5)

Honest

"Matthew McConaughey's life and how he lives it, is a lesson of choices that he's made to get where he is today. The hilarity of a number of situations that he found himself in, still led to profound insights. The sorrows, the trials (self-inflicted included), the joys and even the confusions that have culminated in a life well travelled and well lived-all done without losing himself. Very inspiring. I can't wait to read his next book about the second half of his life."

— Lisa M. (5/5)

Better than I thought that is would be

"First off, let me say that I am not a Matthew McConaughey fan. I only like him in True Detective and the Dallas Buyers Club. I was watching HotOnes- episode, and he talked about the book, and I went out to take a look at it-one to get out of the apartment, and two, I was looking for a book to read. I was drawn to this book, and it was better than I thought it would be; it was great! It is very philosophic, enlightening, and very much a find your path, and don't ignore the signs the universe throws at you. I am still not a fan of him, but I respect McConaughey after reading this book. It's the book you don't know you needed to read until you read it."

— Willsturner (5/5)

Better than I thought that is would be

"First off, let me say that I am not a Matthew McConaughey fan. I only like him in True Detective and the Dallas Buyers Club. I was watching HotOnes- episode, and he talked about the book, and I went out to take a look at it-one to get out of the apartment, and two, I was looking for a book to read. I was drawn to this book, and it was better than I thought it would be; it was great! It is very philosophic, enlightening, and very much a find your path, and don't ignore the signs the universe throws at you. I am still not a fan of him, but I respect McConaughey after reading this book. It's the book you don't know you needed to read until you read it."

— Willsturner (5/5)

Deep thoughts

"Matthew McConaughey is easy to love. He loves life! He has spent it doing it his way and doing the things he loves. Greenlights is his way of saying to move forward through life, stopping every so often, negotiating the obstacles and making progress. Through journals and mementos and every other little thing he has picked up along life's journey, McConaughey has learned a few things. In his thoughtful way, he has as many questions as answers to what he's seen and experienced. A thoroughly enjoyable life story told with great self-reflection and humor."

— NotoriousEAM (5/5)

Q&A