The Game of Life and How to Play it by Florence Scovel-Shinn

By Vernon Marshall View Profile
This unusual little book has a catchy title, reminiscent of a number of books on popular psychology published over the years. The title does not do justice to the book, however. The philosophy within is complex and is basically a form of karmic interpretation of the teachings of the Jewish and Christian Scriptures. It is a short work, less than a hundred pages, so the ideas are somewhat compressed. The unusual style of the book suggests that the chapters are based on talks rather than on material originally meant to be read. The book would appeal little to the academic, as there are no references, quotations or bibliography. The style is chatty with plenty of anecdotal examples of the claims made by the writer. The book is, I would suggest, a starter or inspirational spark to studying the ideas in further depth. There is also something a little old-fashioned about the approach together with an unfortunate use of male gender-exclusive language. Nevertheless, despite that, the issues it covers are worth exploring for themselves.