a million miles in a thousand years: don miller | a review

I have been eagerly anticipating the release of Don Miller’s newest book, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years. I was lucky enough to grab a pre-release review copy. I am usually not one to anticipate forth coming books. I like to wait and let the dust settle, then decide if it is worth the time. But this one was well worth not waiting for. So here is my review.

The book is a memoir of sorts, recalling the life that he had after the post-success slide. After the popularity that Blue Like Jazz created for him, he didn’t know what to do. He didn’t have much more to strive after, he had reached most of his dreams; so he slept late, watched a lot of TV, you know the kind of stuff most of do everyday. He recalls how it wasn’t until two guys contacted him about making a movie out of  Blue Like Jazz that things started to change for him.

He was confronted with what it takes to make a movie, creating a story that people will engage in for a couple of hours. He then begins to apply the techniques of writing a good script, to his life. This idea of story—creating a narrative with one’s life—is the main pulse of the book. He guides us through the steps he took to make a better story for himself, while giving hints at doing the same for us.

Here is an excerpt, the author’s note which opens the story:

IF YOU WATCHED a movie about a guy who wanted a Volvo and worked for years to get it, you wouldn’t cry at the end when he drove off the lot, testing the windshield wipers. You wouldn’t tell your friends you saw a beautiful movie or go home and put a record on to think about the story you’d seen. The truth is, you wouldn’t remember that movie a week later, except you’d feel robbed and wanted your money back. Nobody cries at the end of a movie about a guy who wants a Volvo.

But we spend years actually living those stories, and expect our lives to feel meaningful. Truth is, if what we choose to do with our lives won’t make a story meaningful, it won’t make a life meaningful either. Here’s what I mean by that:

This is definitely A rate Don Miller writing. It is classified as religion/spirituality, but it is much more life centered than -ologies & -isms found in most religious books. He presents a compelling narrative of how we need to refocus our life, focusing on creating a story {with all the danger & uncertainty} than a retirement package {with all the safety & insurance policies}. It is kind of like reading Proverbs in narrative form.