Book Review: 'The Last Lecture' by Randy Pausch

✰✰✰✰✰  The Last Lecture is the result of an actual lecture that Dr. Randy Pausch gave in 2007. It's based on the exercise where college professors are asked to imagine that they are near death and have one final opportunity to pass along their wisdom and knowledge to their students in the form of a last lecture. As the audience listens to the lecture, they can't help but to ponder on the same question: What wisdom would I share with the world if I knew I was dying?

Dr. Pausch didn't have to imagine his demise. He knew he was dying of cancer, and this truly would be his last lecture. He could have backed out. Yet, Dr. Pausch embraced the idea of giving a last lecture that really was a last lecture. He approached it with the same zeal he lived his life...full speed ahead.

And as it turned out, his last lecture wasn't about dying at all. It wasn't about cancer or even his family. Dr. Pausch's lecture was about living...really living in the moment and having fun while doing it. He distilled his philosophy for living into succinct lessons.

On that day nearly twelve years ago, the auditorium was packed with an audience of 400 students, colleagues, friends, and family, who laughed and cried along with Randy as he gave the speech of a lifetime. Co-author Jeffrey Zaslow was in the audience that day, and witnessed something remarkable.

It was almost an afterthought that the lecture was taped. In the end, what was meant as a gift to his children, has inspired people around the world. As Jeffrey Zaslow wrote, "His fate is ours, sped up." And that message has resonated with people around the world.

The Bottom Line: This is an inspirational guide on how to live your life to the fullest. Dr. Pausch saw life as an adventure, and he turned his experiences, including cancer, into lessons for his children and anyone else who cared to listen.  Filled with anecdotes, tips, and encouragement, this slim book is one that you will read again and again. Highly recommended reading for everyone including young adults. This should be required reading in high schools and colleges as it makes you stop and think about your priorities. It also makes you appreciate the moment you are in right now. Written with humor, honesty, and humility, you'll feel like you're chatting with a childhood friend. Nonetheless, it's best to read this book in short sittings because there is so much packed on every page.

Book Club Notes: This book was very well received by the members who picked it up and took the time to read it. While the book represents a very tough topic to talk about, the focus of the book was actually about living your life to the fullest rather than the process of dying. Dr. Pausch exemplified the beauty and adventure of life. He packed more living into his 47 years than others do in 90. On a scale from 1 - 5 with 5 being the highest, the median rating was a 5 with ratings from 4.5 - 5.

As one member mentioned, this book is just one of Dr. Pausch's legacies. He was a brilliant man who will live on in his lessons. Someone else mentioned that The Last Lecture accomplished so many things: lessons to his children, a goodbye to his co-workers, and a thank you to his family and friends; it really was the perfect head fake. We talked about the overall theme of optimism that permeated the book, and there is so much wisdom contained within that many of us will revisit this book again in the future as well as share it with others. Dr. Pausch had a gift for inspiring others to become the best they could possibly be.

Another member saw this book as a "roadmap to life;" a heartwarming story that makes you realize how short life is. And another commented that he wished he could have met Dr. Pausch in person. This is a book about overcoming obstacles and finding your passion. By bravely sharing his journey with the world, Dr. Pausch and his family were an unbelievable example to us. In fact, Dr. Pausch's message of living life to the fullest is still relevant today. Very highly recommended for book clubs.

There are a multitude of discussion questions available online. Here are a few:
ReadingGroupGuides, LitLovers, BookRags, Exclusively Books, &
HCC Learning Web.

Here's a list of additional resources used for this discussion: 

• Dr. Randy Pausch's obituary from The New York Times.
• Links to both Randy Pausch's Last Lecture: Achieving Your Childhood Dreams and Celebrating 10 Years of the Last Lecture can be found here.
• Dr. Randy Pausch's website. 

Sadly, co-author Jeffrey Zaslow died young as well. He was tragically killed in an auto accident only four years after The Last Lecture was published. You can also visit Jeffrey Zaslow's website here. 

Details: The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch with Jeffrey Zaslow. Hardcover reissue edition published by Hachette Books in 2018. 206 p. ISBN: 978-1-4013-2325-7