Customer Reviews

2DO Before I Die : The Do-It-Yourself Guide to the Rest of Your Life

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
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I read this book whilst having a lazy morning. And it was a perfect time to read it - actually making time to reflect on my life and what I really want to make of it!

This book is very provocative - it's essentially a collection of individual stories, hopes and thoughts, organized into 10 sections, combined with some helpful practical hints and tips. The aim is to enable each reader to begin, or to continue, planning what he/she really wants to achieve - whether that's making a major life change such as having a child, or daring to be spontaneous. I really liked the fact the wide variety of contributions from different age groups - it added to the book's legitimacy and its interest. It's also got some brilliant design which definitely added to the overall appeal of the book.

I strongly recommend reading this and it's also a prefect gift for someone - especially if that person is at a critical juncture in his/her life, either positively or negatively. Enjoy!

While browsing in a book store on a recent trip, this little tome with its bright red cover and the cute drawings on the cover caught my eye. Having just turned the big 6-0 a few weeks earlier, I was starting to grapple with the reality that I was somewhere near third base on the trip around the bases called life. If there were things I wanted to do, I needed to start doing them. But what should they be? I wouldn't want to miss any that could be important. Inspiration was needed.

This little book proved to be just that. It's not a boring goal setting book with a kazillion exercises (most of which you'll never complete) designed to help you find your way. It's full of short essays submitted by people like you and me who have actually done the things they are writing about. And if those aren't enough, each section has some of those thought provoking questions about what is important to the reader as well as lots of other ideas of things to do in one's lifetime that didn't make the final cut to full essay status. It's an easy read but one that will keep you coming back to soak up the full richness of what the writers offer. And if the book isn't enough, the authors have a web site with more essays by people who have done the things you're dreaming about as well as the capability for you to submit your own.

Without a hint of the 'do as I say, not as I do' this is a very brave idea, project and now book. From conception to delivery it is a liberation - I would lend you my copy but know I wouldn't get it back. It dares to 'think small' and celebrates the pleasure - personal or wide reaching - that freeing yourself from your own expectations can so often bring. But there are absolutely no excuses made for excuses and as the book says it is less 'how to' than 'why not'.

People have been moved to tell their stories - lots of them. And these are sometimes funny or inspiring and not always perfect. This is a very generous book, in all ways.

I actually bought this book after I had already started my "life list." I was going through a period in my life when I was trying to re-discover what I wanted to do with my life, who I was. I thought it might help me make sense of why I wanted to do some of these things so badly, or maybe make some suggestions I wouldn't have thought of. It did both.

"2Do Before I Die" has a total of 100 stories/suggestions, split up into 10 different categories: Roots, Explore, Experiment, Challenge, Give, Learn, Express, Love, Work, & Legacy. After each section, there is a "winding road" of questions, such as: "Is there anything from your childhood you feel you should apologize for?" or "Name one thing you wish you had done more of when you were a teenager." (Roots) "If you used a false name, what might it be?" or "Name something you would like to try that would surprise someone you know." (Experiment) I kept a notebook/journal as I read this, answering the questions. It was very insightful & helpful.

This book also includes the author's reason for writing this, ways to start, and even a place for you to create your own list in the back. Part journal, part inspiration, part guide, this is a fabulous book you can read over & over, and take away something different each time. As we grow, our answers and lists may change, and "2Do Before I Die" helps you along the way.

With this, their first opus, Ogden and Day have produced that very rare thing: a book one might read in the bathroom but that actually keeps you thinking after you have finished. My copy started out on the toilet shelf, and I duly chuckled at the funny pieces ("Streak Naked", "Be Eccentric") and sighed at the sad ones ("Find My Natural Mother", "Work With The Homeless") - but it was upon reading the nominally less-promising "Open A Restaurant" that I started to take more notice. For here was the tale of a life turned completely upside-down in order to follow one of those familiar 'what-if's, existing for months on nothing but insane confidence and friends' charity. After this, my book escaped the confines of the lavatory as I ploughed through the rest, finding whims that we often dismiss as impossible ("Live In Italy For A Year", "Start A Second Career In My Spare Time", even "Come Out Of The Closet") tackled with gusto and bracing humour. Refreshingly, the editors seem to have deliberately chosen stories that don't necessarily end happily or neatly: the new restaurant owner admits that his life has never been more replete with challenges and difficulties, but that he 'wouldn't change it for the world,' while the author of "Run A Bed And Breakfast" admits that her life has already moved on once more, but reflects back on the experience with an inspiring fondness.
Best of all is "Start All Over Again" - written while the writer was travelling to begin a new life in San Francisco, as if dictated over an aeroplane telephone.
A must.

"In the rush to consume life, rather than live it, it's no surprise we sometimes lose sight of what's important to us"

I was only a few pages into the book when I got to that quote. Memorable. As one who is hitting my mid-30's life questions, 10 years after the mid-20's life crisis (i graduated college, now what?), this was a great reminder - a reminder of the importance of living, not 'checking the boxes.' I started with my own list by the 10th page. Great read too. Like sitting around a table with friends sharing stories - no judging, no preaching, just good stories.

I have to say that this little book is very moving at times. Some of the stories are playful and carefree but there are some very introspective and powerful moments. I think people of all ages can find something emotive and empowering within its animated pages. High on the gift list! Cheers to all of the contributors!

I've never read a book like "2Do Before I Die." It's an uncomplicated way to review your life and plan for the future. Peppered throughout the book are thought provoking questions... smartly illustrated... that enhance the reader's experience.
It reminds us that life can be exciting and fulfilling. It's a self-help guide to living your life without regrets!
For me, it was an interesting look into other people's... dreams... and significant, life changing moments. It's insightful, uplifting, and has inspired me to think about what I want to do in my lifetime.

I first came across this book through the authors' website ([...]) and enjoyed the wide range of stories they gathered. It's an old idea - what do you really want to do before you die? - but I've never seen the question handled in such an entertaining, inspirational, and provocative way. And though it's useful as a conversation starter, or as a way to get one thinking of your own equivalents, the book can also be read just as an anthology of really good, well-told stories.

The stories are divided into 10 categories, and though I didn't like them all, most were nicely written, and didn't get soppy or cliched. My favorites are 'Perform Stand-up comedy', 'Open a restaurant', and 'Build something that lasts' - but I also like the fact that serious stuff ('Come out of the closet') sits so well next to small, experimental stuff like "Grow a beard" and "Plant a tree".

Overall, the book is a really refreshing take on the subject matter. I bought one for myself but plan to pick up a couple more as gifts. A nice surprise.

I ordered this book from Amazon after browsing through it at a local book store. The design is what first caught my eye--it reminded me of one of those extreme survival guides that have been (are?) so popular. But most of us don't need to know how to survive a plane crash (good luck!) or a skydiving catastrophe (say splat!) or an alien invasion (could they really be much worse than who's running the show down here?) We just need to have a better sense of how to survive the trials and travails of Slogging Through Life in This, the World We Have No Choice But to Inhabit.

Not that this book holds the secret to success or happiness or fulfillment. Who or what does? But it does contain a diverse array of beautiful examples of finding all three of those things in the march of moments that make up our lives. From the everyday to the extraordinary, I found it to be a powerful exploration of how to make meaning in a world that too often tries to make our meaning for us--and a powerful reminder of how important it is for all of us to try to do so, if we hope to die with the sense of peace and dignity we all deserve. (Not trying to be morbid, and the book certainly isn't at all--but if the inevitability of death isn't a powerful enough motivator to get us off our couches and into our own lives, what is?)

I've always tried to live life on my own terms--sometimes I've succeeded, and sometimes I've failed. But after reading this, I guess I don't feel so alone in the attempt. And I feel even more inspired to keep up the valiant effort.

2 Do Before I Die? Well, among many other things, stop buying books from Amazon and put all of my money into my local booksellers....until that happens, I guess I'll settle for encouraging people to check out this beautiful, inspirational book.