Customer Reviews

The Return of the Ragpicker

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

I loved the original 'ragpicker' book by Og Mandino -- The Greatest Miracle in the World.' This sequel was written about 10 or 15 years later and something happened to Mr. Mandino in that time! He seemed more interested in telling you about all of his accomplishments, all of his material possessions, etc. than the inspirational message in the original book. Further, he replaced much of the God-based inspiration with politically correct platforms.

Just bizarre to me how an author could change that much. I read a couple other reviews from disappointed readers and ignored them. Now I wish I would have believed them.

I still love the older Og Mandino books, however, especially the Trilogy, but this one isn't worth the waste of time or money, or worth the disappointment in this author that I've looked up to....read at your own risk.

I have had a hard time not throwing this book away. It is a shameful way to plug your own accomplishments ... using the "notion" that you are having a special relationship with a messenger from God. Simon Potter was merely an avenue for Og Mandino to let the world know he shared company (in the palace)with Imelda Marcos. Of course, Simon Potter witnessed Mr. Og's kind gestures when paying for the "armed guard's" meals as they were protecting such an important man as Og Mandidno. This book is a conversation Og Mandino has with his own self. A book full of Og Mandino being full of himself.

This book was extremely hard to read and appeared to be a bragging platform for the author. The majority of the book is full of the author proclaiming his success through his own words and the words of this mentor. I almost threw the book out the window when reading the passage, "Mister Og...Certainly you are no longer motivated by the need for money. I smiled thinking to myself that he already knew so much about me it was a good probability that he also had a good idea of my net worth." Use your time more wisely and find something more worthwhile to read.

Mr. Mandino dilutes his message by using most of his book to tell the reader that he overcame failure to become a great success. He goes on in exquisite detail to enumerate all his great accomplishments and acclaim. Unfortunately most people are not turned on to a message that says, "Look at all my awards and how great I am. Read my affirmations for six minutes a day and you too can be wonderful." While he is at this, he lets you know how he stands on gun control, the environment, TV and other political things.

I am surprised his affirmations use negative words like "not". Many consider this an ineffectual way to write affirmations. A positive statement works better on the subconscious.

He does come up with some good life concepts at the end of the book. Most of these can be found in the New Testament. I love Mr. Mandino and his earlier books. I have to wonder why he wrote this one in this manner.

Perhaps it's me, but I had to put this down and walk away on page 101. The greatest miracle is that I made it that far. The only thing I learned is that Mandino claims to sell a lot of books. I say "claims" because this beauty has barely cracked the top 100,000 in sales at Amazon. Whatever. I'm obviously not the brightest bulb as it took me 100 pages to figure out that Simon Potter's only role is to pump the author's ego. No wonder Mandino likes him so much.

Who are you trying to kid, Og? I guess you made a lot of bucks with this one...I know you dug into my pocket. It seems like the bucks are your major interest in all your later books. This is the first book that I kept track (page by page) of how much is self-aggrandizement (55%) or simple filler (20%) or characters out of context (18%) or actually something worth reading (7%). Not recommended for anyone who doesn't have a fetish for finding minute needles lost deep in huge piles of straw.

I enjoyed Mr. Mandino's first effort, _Greatest Salesman in the World_, for substantially different reasons than _Ragpicker_. _Salesman_ was short and to the point and had a clever ending, and the principles were well worth repeating. I read it a few times over and, encouraged, I went to the library and picked up all the Og Mandino books I could find--they were nice and short and if a few were half as good, I could learn a lot in a short time. Self-help books usually give me a temporary boost, but regrettably, after a while Og's oeuvres fell into a certain pattern where my main 'can-do' was that I could write better than this. Person is down in the dumps, person finds inspiration to get out of the dumps, the original source of inspiration dries up, person writes to others how to follow suit before the advice is lost forever. _Ragpicker_ seems to epitomize what can go wrong with a lazy yet prolific writing style.

I suppose for practical purposes this is all right; a person can see different yet similar positive messages, and these offset the sorts you get in everyday life. What is not so good is that the style has degenerated terribly, and events begin to parallel Mandino's life, and eventually adulation for Mandino slips in; Mr. Mandino forgets that it is the reader who is supposed to enjoy the book. There are slight drops from _Salesman_ to part II, where Hafid, the Greatest Salesman, starts his own self-help tour for peasants. You see a huge drop in the prequel to _Ragpicker_, _Greatest Miracle in the World_, when an angel-figure dubs Mandino's work a 'hand of God' work with various timeless classics.

But in _Ragpicker_ the only originality left is that Og drops in a weird bird to accompany the angel-figure we thought had died in _Miracle_. They then discuss how good Og's descriptions are of his place in Arizona(financed by his business successes, natch) and how the book was a great seller and Og can't believe it's true. There are several rounds of 'Couldn't a done it without you, sport,' a general lamentation of the human condition, and an assurance that More Needs To Be Done(the book holds true to these convictions.) Og then spends a lot of time in equal disbelief over various good and bad events while espousing the need for faith. It's not all self-focused as Og gives some recognition to other people's books that he likes but this makes _Ragpicker_ feel more like an effort at networking and showing the author's in with the right crowd than a book for someone who wants guidance. There are far too many novels that give up on having a plot of their own and collapse into post-modern meta-art, but _Ragpicker_ seems even shabbier.

Yet every time I read it, _Ragpicker_ is so laughably fatuous that I find myself cheered up and motivated, laughing while considering the very valid principles discussed--it's easier to work when you're happy, you know. So if Mr. Mandino's intention was, at bottom, to inspire people to do it even at his own expense, a back/forth commute where I read _Miracle_ and then _Ragpicker_ does that. They're both short and facile enough for such quick disposal, and I'm in such a good mood and ideas are buzzing around in my head so fast that things I've put off for months will get done. Their very act of being published encourages me as a writer, in fact. But they are not good literature, and people of a less sardonic bent than myself will find better guidance in _Salesman_.

The Book still hasn't arrived, it was sent to a correctional facility so it may be held up on there in.....I'll continue to wait and let you know when it arrives....Thank you

As is true of all of Mandino's works, this is truly an outstanding and captivating read ... I read it cover to cover in about two hours and then started over again to digest more deeply all the gems of knowledge revealed within. Another life-changing, magnificent novel in true Mandino fashion!

There are many self help books. Og Mandino deserves a special place among the various authors to write on this topic. His message is very clear and practical. It is simple. The world would be a better place and there would be no threats or fears of terrorism. Og Mandino's books should be made compulsory reading in all schools all over the world to make a positive change. Only by hard work and persistence we will be able to make a positive change. It is our duty to be good to ourselves,and the world around us as we are part of the cosmic intelligence whether you accept it and like it or not. The message contained in this book is priceless and has stood the test of time.It is sad to see that we are still waiting and not acting.