The talented author and public speaker spent many years on the road, chasing stories across the world as an NPR correspondent stationed in places like New Delhi, Jerusalem, and Tokyo. Having seen countless moments and incidents of struggle, conflict, and tragedy, Weiner channeled the opposite side of the human experience into his first book The Geography of Bliss, where he explored locations where the residents are known to be happier than the average person. It's not surprising that some of the most popular newspaper and magazine articles are on the subject of personal contentment, like the Danish concept of hygge, or the experience of cozy, comfy conviviality.
I first discovered Weiner's work with his third book The Geography of Genius, where he conducts "a search for the world's most creative places from Athens to Silicon Valley." Weiner asks the obvious question of why at certain times in certain places at certain moments in history there was an exponential growth of creativity and thinking. From the philosophers of ancient Greece to the coffeehouses of Vienna, genius builds upon itself and like-minded thinkers tend to gather and push each other to new intellectual heights.
Weiner's work is rich, engaging, and readable just like the numerous stories he told as a journalist bringing the world home.
No comments:
Post a Comment