Customer Reviews

Join Me!

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

If you've ever wondered why people join a group, the answer could be for no apparent reason. If you think this sounds ludicrous, just read Danny Wallace's JOIN ME! and you'll discover that it can be true. This book, which is a serious story told in an amusing way, tells of an offbeat journalist who puts an ad in a newspaper with just the words "join me" and information of where he could be contacted. Before long, people responded much to Wallace's surprise. When he decided he has to figure out a purpose for the group, he comes up with an idea that sounds good based on the thoughts of one of his eccentric uncles who wanted to start a utopian society in Switzerland.

The charm of the book comes not from its clever idea, but from Wallace himself. We discover he's a goofball of sorts, lovable and quirky, yet intelligent and serious enough to capture our interest. We read about the way he lives his life, the interactions he has with the "joinees" who are a varied lot at best, and we meet his beleaguered girlfriend Hanne, who more often than not does not know what to do with he eccentric boyfriend, but she's not the static girlfriend with the weight of the world on her shoulders. While readers understand her frustration, they also tend to like Wallace, and there are times we want to say get rid of her. Readers of his latest book YES MAN learn what could have been predicted after reading the book-the relationship does not survive.

At the core of the book it's not a silly story. Rather it shows the goodness of people, a desire to belong, and a belief that belonging to some group--any group, can be positive and at times life changing. It's a feel good book and an enjoyable read, though I will have to admit, it can at times be repetitious so it might have been a "feel better book" if it had been a few pages thinner.

There is a certain species of twentysomething male (frequently British and living in London) who spends a substantial amount of his time playing video games, watching movies, engaging in spurious debates with his flatmates over cans of lager and embarking on pointless bets for entertainment. Anyone familiar with the 'Men Behaving Badly' comedy series will understand. Sadly the majority of attempts to turn such Stella fuelled ravings into readable material fall sadly flat.
'Join Me' is rather refreshing however. It chronicles the extraordinary but true story of the 'Collective' that Danny Wallace spawns as a result of placing a simple advert in 'Loot Magazine'. The way this collective (Wallace is eager for it not to be called a cult) takes on a life of its own as its increasingly bewildered leader tries to formulate a purpose for his creation leads to encounters with characters from the more derivative sides of British life - witness a Metallica obsessed vicar from Inverness.
Wallace tells his story in a witty, engaging and light hearted manner that really brings out the element of 'good blokeness in him'. The story rattles along well, with several improbable coincidences happening to Danny to ensure his project does not become tedious such as his discovery that the first person his joinees helped on his 'Make an old man happy' mission was a convicted con man. And the reader really feels for Hanne, Danny's long suffering girlfriend who is kept in the dark about his harebrained scheme for so long.
The book could have been a rather sad depiction of a bloke bet that went a bit far, but Wallace is funny and intelligent enough to avoid slipping into that mode. The end is a little flat compared to the end of the book, one half expects the joinee collective to turn into something really remarkable. But it is an enjoyable romp through the semi lunatic antics of one personable and funny young Londoner.

This is a great light-hearted novel that will make you laugh out loud and maybe even make you think about how we all interact with each other in our daily lives. A great story that is easy to read and leaves you feeling inspired, as well as a little bit happier, but at no point is the book saccharine. The humor is clever, dry, and witty, making it one of the best light reading books I've read in a very long time.

My first introduction to Join Me was last fall. My friend and I were on a long bus ride and halfway through she pulled out the book. She told me the director of our very untraditional school had convinced the publishers that were working on the book here in the States to send him a trial copy. He had finished it quickly and recomended it to my friend who was now half way through. She informed me that it was very funny and proceeded to find her favorite passages to read to me. I was intrigued....I wished to read the book after her but it never happened. So imagine my happiness when, in January, I find out that one of the classes to be offered the coming quater was to be based around the book! Since the book is baisically about Random Acts of Kindness, which has been a big theme throughout my school's history, we decided to read from the book occasionally, focusing mainly on the acts of kindness themselves. It was brilliant except for the fact that I still was unable to read the whole book, when I wished to read it. So I finally went down to a bookstore to find out when the book was going to be published. They told me they could hold a copy for me when it came in in a month. Around the same time, the director of the school informs us that Danny is on a book tour here in the US and is doing a book reading at the bookstore 5 blocks down from our school. And that he has talked to the person booking Danny's readings.
Danny would be coming to our school!
And he did! By that time I had long ago finished the book and was ecstatic that the Leader would actually be visiting MY school! Unfortunately I got sick. But there was no way I was missing this! Nothing would stop me from going. When I came into school Danny was already there and was just being led downstairs by the director. The director stopped when he saw me and told me it was great I could make it in. "And this is Danny," he said to me. And to Danny, something like, "Tesha's sick today, but came in to see you!" Danny thanked me for coming in even when I was sick but then a huge rush of people came over and I didn't get to say anything back. Danny talked to the school for about an hour and after that a smaller group took him on a tour of the area around our school. We took him to get bubble tea (he'd never heard about it and wanted to try it even after some of us advised against it) and got lots of pictures including ones at the bookstore with an almost lifesize posterboard cut-out of himself! On the walk around I did get to talk to him more and he told me when he saw me he thought to himself that I looked like I should be in bed. Skipping forward, he had to leave, but, again ignoring my sickness (though I swear I got a bit better just from the sheer excitement), I went to the bookstore that night to the book reading. Needless to say, I brought a passport sized photo with me as it seemed much more meaningful to give it to him in person rather than to send it through the mail to get lost in all the other photos people all over the States had promised to mail him. So now I am a Joinee, doing kind acts whenever the opportunity arises, feeling great and a Danny sits in the corner of the biggest room at school, arms spread wide and reminding us daily of the happiest cult/collective to exist and the incredible, if accidental, brilliance behind it.
A note to everyone: I know you know this, but I'll tell you again. IT'S A TRUE STORY! It didn't really occur to me that it was until I had the chance to hear from Danny, some stories about the people in the book that have happened after where it leaves off. You can email these people, talk to them. For example, Whitby is in charge of the Join Me online community and many of the first joinees use the Join Me forum! It's all real! Come and say hi!
-Joinee Karpoff

This book made me laugh, made me almost cry, and definitely made me want to Join Danny! I wanted to become a Joinee before he even decided what they should do. Anybody who starts a "collective" (it's NOT a cult!)without knowing what it should be for is a pretty cool guy in my book. How many of us have ever been sitting around bored and thought of something crazy to do? Now, how many actually did it? Well, Danny did, he placed an ad reading simply "Join Me" and instructing people to send their picture to an address. This is not the first time he's done something a little crazy and his girlfriend is tired of his schemes so he doesn't tell her about this one. What does he decide to do with his collective? Does his girlfriend find out? Does Danny change the world? Read the book and find out - you'll love it! And just maybe you'll Join.

I came across this book while on holidays in the UK. The cover design struck me initially; it's quite striking, with a white background and a picture of Danny Wallace (the author and Leader) centred, holidng up a sign with the words "Join Me" in magenta writing.
The blurb mentions "the story of a man who started a cult by accident"... needless to say, I was intrigued.
Join Me is the story of Danny Wallace, and his valiant efforts to convince strangers to commit random acts of kindness on a weekly basis. Inspired by the sad tale of his great uncle's failed mission to colonise a collective of followers to live with him in harmony on a farm in his native Switzerland, Danny vowed to bring together 100 individuals and unite them in a common desire to bring happiness to the world. Despite initial misgivings (and the toll taken on his long-term relationship), Danny's "collective" grew beyond his wildest expectations.
Not only are his adventures entertaining, but his humorous, witty writing style offers plenty of chuckles along the way.
I highly reccommend this book, evidenced by the fact that I have joined and am now a loyal member of the Australian chapter.

Danny had the idea to start his own cult/religion. Like everything else he does, the results are hilarious.

This book, first and foremost, shows how disillusioned people need something, anything, to believe in. This fact is evinced by how many people are willing to blindly join Danny and follow him. They do not question the direction of the organization until it becomes clear to many of them that there isn't one. Even though the book was hilarious, I found this to be a sad commentary on faith and belief today.

Don't let the above paragraph fool you. The reader is treated to a hilarious account of Danny asking people to join an entity with no purpose, and then scrambling to find a purpose when there is grumbling in the ranks. His neurotic side is in full force, as shown by his imaginary war against an overeager Joinee. His interactions with his increasingly suspicious girlfriend also make this worth the price of admission.

Since this book was published, the Join Me movement has swelled in size to several thousand members. It is heartwarming to see that such a good organization has so many followers.

This is a great book that makes the reader laugh out loud and think about faith at the same time. Highly recommended.

The new Jesus? No.
But a nice guy, nevertheless, who has a mission.
What is it?
Well, even Danny wasn't certain when he placed an ad in a local paper saying "JOIN ME", complete with a request for your passport photo, and an address you could respond to--but then whoever starts off in life knowing exactly what they are doing?

The end result is a movement of do-gooders, affectionally referred to as "The Karma Army", who are moved to practice random acts of kindness on fridays, up to and including buying an old man a cup of tea, paying someone's bus fare, washing your neighbor's car when they aren't looking, and just generally putting goodness back into an increasingly bitter world.

If you are turning on the news and are just too saddened by it, go grab this book and you'll immediately perk up.

And then, just maybe you'll join the Karma Army too---and try to make the world a better place.

Join Him!
I did. (:

This book was so funny I ended up reading it out loud on a road trip. I kept chuckling, and finally the driver demanded I share. I can't recommend it strongly enough. Combine this book with "Round Ireland with a Fridge" and you have a perfect Brit-book weekend.

The first thing about this book that I loved is its ability to make me laugh out loud. It was extremely enjoyable and entertaining. I couldnt believe that people actually did what Danny wanted them to do. I enjoyed it also because people interest me so much and this showed me what people will do that you would never think they would. JOIN ME!