Vincent Pastore

I have a low view of pop-culture philosophy books. Sure, it's great that philosophers are trying to make known philosophical topics, and make them available to the masses, but in the end, it's just insulting to somebody who's fully capable of understanding such philosophical topics without needing them to be candy-coated in pop culture to help digestion.

That, and I've never really watched the Sopranos. So, I guess you can say I'm not exactly qualified to review this book. I hate books written to capture some of the pop-culture dollars, and I have never experienced this particular slice of pop culture. Maybe if you're a fan of the Sopranos, you'd enjoy this book. Maybe if you have a hard time understanding the writings of Immanuel Kant or Rene Descartes, and you need somebody to hold your hand as they lead you through the nine circles of philosophy. Maybe you don't get irritated at all the corny mob jokes stuck between philosophical principles. Maybe.

Granted, I was able to enjoy some aspects of this book, regardless of my standing on pop-culture books and shows I've never watched. There were amusing looks at locution, and a question of character morality, and so forth. And, there were articles written by self-congratulatory philosophers who thought that they had it all together, but only approached some arguments from one straw-manned side. So, yeah, it had its mix of thought-provocation and eye-rollation.

But as I said, you might love it. Especially if you love The Sopranos, or you read "The Teletubbies and Philosophy: The Tao of Po" without wanting to chuck it through a window.… (meer)