Customer Reviews: Read 110 more reviews...
 A (decent) history of Western philosophy disguised as a (middle of the road) novel August 3, 2008
Mr. Tristan Martin (Cambridge, UK)
Jostein Gaarder has written a concise history of Western philosophy, disguised as a novel. The good news is that the 2000 years of Western philosophy is well explained, the bad news is that the fiction that he hangs the story around, isn't that impressive.
For a philistine such as myself, whose understanding of philosophy extends to having read Plato's Republic and Matt Lawrence's Like a Splinter in Your Mind i.e. basically quite ignorant, Sophie's World did what I needed it to do: it successfully encapsulated and chronologically presented a sequence of ideas and modes of thought that have come to define a Western, rationalist school of thinking. This was exactly what I wanted from the book and in that, I can unreservedly recommend this work. As a work of fiction, Sophie's World sticks together quite well for the first half of the book but once its' central conceit has been revealed, the story becomes much less interesting. I'm certainly not the best judge of fiction as I don't read much of it at all but this story borders on the overly-contrived (which may be intentional).
Given it's subject matter, there is only so far that the material can be simplified before it loses its' meaning (Stephen Hawking's A Brief History of Time is a perfect example). As Sophie's World involves a series of letters and conversations betwixt a philosophy professor and a fourteen year old girl, the intention is that if she can understand it, then you certainly should. Jostein Gaarder has boiled philosophy down to its' fundamentals about as far as you can before it would become a series of aphorisms.
In short, a successful introduction to all the big names and theories of Western thought (perhaps an update might include a section on string theory), kind of Now That's What I Call Philosophy; however, if you are to purchase this for its fictional facet, then I'd suggest thinking twice.
 Proof that you can learn in your leisure! July 16, 2008
Kenny_Consumer
I read this as an adult and wish it had been around when I was a teenager as well. It appealed to the eternal, wondering child within me and I enjoyed it thoroughly. Whatever its flaws, whether you just want to have fun, be absorbed in an enquiring read or to learn something about philosophy, I reckon you'd read it to the end .. I'll certainly read it again.
Engagingly light March 25, 2008
SJR Fawcett (London)
A happy wander around childlike explanitions of key philosopher's and figures through out history. However its engaging and i'm almost half way through - not bad really!
Thanks to Del for recommending it.
Not great, but still worth a look. December 10, 2007
Ryley Parker (Brooklyn, NY USA)
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
I bought Sophie's World a few years ago and I finally finished reading it. In summary I would say something like this. Weak plot, flat characters, ambitious scope (the entire history of philosophy in a few hundred pages), easy to start but hard to finish, a great idea though, but Gaarder is not a compelling writer. I recently bought a copy of Stargazers: stories of the first philosophers, which means Greco-Roman philosophy, and I found it much more enjoyable to read. The characters are the actual philosophers and they are totally believable, and the prose is beautiful, so it's easy to keep reading and enjoying the book. I found myself wishing it would continue with the whole history of philosophy. But Sophie's World has its good moments and it does give you a good overview of the main trends in the history of philosophy, even though the author leaves out or gives short shrift to some important philosophers and probably includes some who should not be there. On the whole, I think it's not a great book, but it's still worth reading for the content. Just don't expect a compelling plot or beautiful prose. Readers who give this book 5 stars either don't know what to compare this book with or they have a few screws loose. I wanted to give it 3 and a half, but since 4 stars is too high a rating, I'll give it 3. Anyone really interested in reading just for the history of philosophy might want to try Bertrand Russell's History of Western Philosophy in one volume.
 A novel to make you look at the world anew December 7, 2007
Nancy Williams (London, England)
I can't recommend this book enough. It isn't just a journey through Western philosophy - it is a story which encourages you to think about your reality and your life from angles you may never have looked before. Delivered through the medium of Alberto Knox - an enigmatic philosophy teacher who arrives in the life of Sophie in a mysterious letter, the book gives rise to a completely different view of reality.
It follows the story of Sophie and Hilde. As stranger and stranger things begin to happen in Sophie's world, it becomes a confusing question of what is going on. Alberto finally covers the philosophy of Berkeley, who posited that the world was nothing more than a figment of the mind of God, and then Sophie's world is turned upside down.
I sat thinking about the book long after I had finished it, contemplating the universe, and my reality and my life. It was like I was given the chance to look at in anew, through different philosophies I had not considered before. It was an incredible experience and one I would recommend to anyone who enjoys thinking.
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