So, I'm reading Chapter 5 in Paul Johnson's
Darwin: Portrait of a Genius. It opens with the November 22, 1859 publication of
The Origin of Species, and therein Johnson mentions two other books, published earlier in 1859, that helped smooth the way for
Origin. The first was John Stuart Mill's
Essay on Liberty. The second - "Samuel Smiles's
Self-Help, a bestseller that soon was to winch up a record sale of 220,000 copies, was a salutary tale of how able, industrious, and dedicated people rose to wealth and fame: how the fittest not only survived but prospered."
Having more than a few "self-help" books on the shelves, I admit surprise over never having heard of
Samuel Smiles. The Oracle Google immediately corrected that deficiency. The Wonder That Is Amazon soon thereafter sent me, free - via Kindle, my very own copy of
Self-Help. Amazing.
 |
| Samuel Smiles by Sir George Reid circa 1875 |
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment