Book Review: Fighting the Inside Dragons by Bogden Ignat

by drpgreene, posted in Book Review

I discovered this book on this post and was immediately moved to acquire it and read it as quickly as possible.  I devoured the entire book in an evening.  Let me begin by saying that this is not a Kumbaya book.  There are hard lessons involved and they are plainly stated.  That is one of the many things that I loved about this book.  Some of us require that “tough love” or to be “hit over the head with the point”.  I know that I do.  The author found a way to deliver that tough love without malice.  That is a spot that is difficult to hit when writing.

There are so many positives to hit regarding this book, I am almost certain that I am going to do a disservice by leaving some of them out.  One of the best points is how misery loves company.  Ignat says, “Most of us can’t wait to find someone that is willing to talk about crappy things with us.”  This is so accurate that it is borderline scary.  If we spent nearly as much time talking about the good things in life instead of the bad, how much different would our lives be.  Often we don’t even realize how much time we spend discussing the negativity of life.  With the 24/7 news cycle and the looming specter of social media, we don’t even have to look far for the crappy things and a person to compare tragedies with.

I love the way that the neural network is described.  So simple, so accurate,  Each time we perform an action that is a habit, we further reinforce that habit.  It is a vicious circle.  Each time we embrace that habit, the path becomes a little wider and a little smoother.

As much as I loved the book, there were a few issues.  Sometimes the wording of a point caused me to go back and reread a passage several times.  While that is inconvenient, I believe that the reinforcement of several readings helped to highlight the message the author intended.  Ironically, the author mentions several times that his writing style is unusual; however, he embraces it and it works for him.

The book is raw and that is a good thing.  Everyone doesn’t respond to the literary version of frolicking in the fields.  Thank you, Bogden.  This book was well worth the time that you invested.  Congratulations.