101 Secrets For Your Twenties

101 Secrets For Your Twenties” by Paul Angone is one of the most incredibly necessary books written in a long time. I’m not exactly sure how to properly begin this review or how to end it, so I’ll begin somewhere in the middle. Up until this past weekend when I read this book on a ‘quarter-life crisis’ trip I took to San Francisco to visit my brother and talk about all the issues I was having with my life, I felt lost, alone and unrelatable. And as crazy as this may sound, my life literally changed after reading this book. The questions I kept asking myself was “why didn’t this come out sooner” and ‘I wish I had read this when I turned 20’ – this book should undoubtedly be a college prerequisite, a graduate must have and birthday gift for anyone turning 20. Everything in this book, I have experienced or am still experiencing, and I thought I was the ONLY one going through it. Literally. I laughed. I cried. I sighed. I smirked. I agreed. I smiled. And most importantly, I related. I am a 27-year old singer/songwriter/entrepreneur rising "popstar" with numerous accolades under my belt. And what I took away from this book is that no matter what dream job you have, what hit single you write, how many zeros are in your bank account – life is universal and so are human experiences. I will undoubtedly carry this book wherever I go, to always refer back to certain points. And I will make sure to give this book to my nieces when they turn 20, 18 years from now. Thank you Paul! From one artist to another – you rock! Can’t wait for more secrets to be revealed… ☺ -Yvonne Sangudi (Los Angeles, CA)

I recently picked up 101 Secrets for your Twenties after seeing it recommended on a friend's blog. I received the book this past Wednesday and sat down that evening to read it. After flipping through the first few pages, I already knew that I was going to thoroughly enjoy it. I ended up reading through all 101 secrets in one read through, finishing the book. While not every secret is applicable to everyone, I feel that there is something to be taken from each tidbit of wisdom. Paul does a great job of applying his advice to a wide array of people, and even those who are no longer in their twenties will have something to take away from this book. It helped me to realize that many of the things I am feeling at 26 are normal, and has inspired me to really reevaluate and reexamine many things in my life. In his writing, Paul mixes great advice with a touch of humor, making this a very fun read. He doesn't make claims that his advice is the end-all-be-all of what you should be doing with your life; just some insightful thoughts and stories from his experience that he hopes others can take something from and apply it to their own life.

The layout of this book is great. It is broken up into many small sections so that you can either flip through and find new advise every day or read it as a book. The book has a good mix of light and deep topics to keep it from getting stale. Only giving it 4 stars rather than 5 because I was surprised by the Christian aspect of the book. Neither the title or blurb on Amazon hinted at the religious overtone. It sort of felt like getting advise from a friend and suddenly they launch into a evangelical narrative. Overall lovely book, definitely worth the money.

Excellent quality and really good price for the product. Great gift 🎁

This is the book that I picked up and swore I wouldn’t like, because it looked so gimmicky. It’s also the book that saw me laughing all the way through, accompanied by occasional sighs and rueful nods of acknowledgement. I sent it to my friend this past week- not my copy but a new one, because my copy was one that I wanted to have handy for a pick-me-up on days where I’m feeling stuck or depressed about work, writing, dreams, the future, or just life in general. As the title says, this book is made up of 101 ‘secrets’. Some are wise and practical (#19: Our plans aren’t the problem. Our timeline is.) Others are laugh-out-loud funny even without Angone’s commentary (#5: Don’t ever, ever check Facebook when you’re A. Depressed. B. Drinking. C. Depressed and drinking. D. Unemployed. E. Struggling with being blessed with singleness while some of your friends seem to be blessed with a Brad Pitt lookalike and that blazing white picket fence shining with the glory of the American Dream on steroids. OR – F. Anytime after 9:17 p.m.) Others share gems of spiritual wisdom (#50: God in HIs infinite mercy saves us from syllabus syndrome.) The overall picture of this book is one of hope. It combines truth and motivation for keeping on keeping on, humor, and insights into improving your situation- or, perhaps, seeing your situation in a different light. Who among us doesn’t need smiles along the path of life? If you’re twenty-something, do yourself a favor and pick up this book. If you’re not, do a friend/family member a favor and give it to them as a gift. We’re probably low on free cash and would greatly appreciate it. (Secret #8: Those friends who are uber-successful in their 20s are the outlier- not the norm) 4.5 out of 5 stars.

This is a great book that offers wonderful advice for anyone! While it is primarily directed at 20 somethings (and I recommend you buy it for every 20 something you know!), I believe that just about anyone can pick this book up and get something out of it. There was one chapter in which the author speaks of his brother working at Starbucks. I won't ruin it for you, but chapters like that make the book a must have for anyone. The layout of the book makes it extremely easy to read and hard to put down. While the author speaks of faith/God in several chapters, I do not believe that this book was over spiritual by any means, nor does the author push his particular religion on the reader as one other reviewer seemed to indicate he did. The few times the author discussed faith, I believed it was done very tastefully and with solid advice regardless of the reader's particular religious affiliation. The only thing that I would say would be a negative about the book would be that the author seemed to bounce from one topic to another a little too casually. For example one chapter would be about relationships, then the next would be on careers, then the next would be family, then back to relationship, ect. But as I said before, I thought it was an extremely easy read, and I don't think that it took away from the overall wonderfulness of the book!

I would not consider myself a book reader. I read if I have to. However, I couldn't put this book down, so I took it to work with me and had it at my desk to look at in-between treating patients. This book works out perfectly as a pick up and put down book because you can read one secret, laugh, ponder, and feel really inspired then...da da da da your off to concur the world! One of my 20something coworkers came up to me and reported that she couldn't help but look through it. She had seen secret #18 "A date is a date is a date is a..." "A date is not a marriage proposal. It is a romantic comedy. It's not a death sentence." that hit home with her in a funny yet profound way and she said "I gotta buy this book!" I took this book to a 4th of July party and some of my 20something in-laws were there. I proceeded to share with them some of my favorite secrets like #10 "You grow into growing up. (Part One)" "29 signs your...gasp...and adult" and they laughed, and asked me to read more. This book is a good way to "spark dialogue" between your peers. You can then, as the author suggests, "share ideas, questions, struggles, wins, and looses with like-minded 20somethings." This book has been especially helpful to me (a 32 year old) because it has debunked a lie that I have been fed my entire life. The lie that if life hasn't worked out the EXACT way I thought it was "suppose to" then there must be something wrong with YOU. But now I know secret #19 "Our plans aren't the problem. Our timeline is." and #6 "Life will never feel like it is "suppose to" " because, as the author says," "suppose to" is the stealer of peace and productivity. It's the leading cause of Obsessive Comparison Disorder with everyone who "has it better". No one has it all figured out...if we're always living like we're "suppose to", we're never going to truly live." This book is perfect as a graduation present, wedding present, baby shower gift, birthday present, anytime gift...whatever just give it to someone! They will laugh and enjoy it...guaranteed!

I got this for a gift. It was ok. There were some points made in the book that I thought would be helpful to read about. It came in good condition. I give it 3 stars.