One of 2 books I recommend everyone read and that I could reread over & over (and plan to), the other being Tuesdays with Morrie. While the latter has a soft spot in my heart, The Last Lecture is definitely the more readable choice for most people. Despite the circumstances, don't worry - it is not depressing or heavy. It is a surprisingly delightful, pleasurable read, and even humorous at many times. Like Tuesdays with Morrie, it is not about dying, it teaches us how to live a full and happy life. It has many many valuable lessons, delivered in a non cheesy, non preaching, actually pleasurable and useful way that will stick with you. I recommend this book to anyone and everyone. It will have wide appeal, even to those who don't typically read nonfiction. The author seems to have been a brilliant, witty, fun, loving, honest man, a bit of a kid at heart, who would have been a honour to have known. I plan to reread this regularly to remind myself of his lessons. I'm about due for a read...

I loved loved loved this book! Randy's words are so inspiring and I think they actually made me cry..more than once. I even put my favourite quotes from the book into my iPod so I have easy access to them! I've already read this book for a second time, and I'll definitely be reading it again. I would recommend this book to everyone, especially to those who might be going through a rough time. This book really shows the importance of following your dreams and that anything is possible. Pick up this book - you won't be disappointed.

The Last Lecture was a book that outlined Randy Pausch's life. It was an enjoyable book to read. It didn't show his life from start to finish, but showed more of the parts that mattered as they came up. The cover was designed to look like an older book, with a rocket ship and stars. It was written in Pausch's point of view, and showed his thoughts and opinions during and after events in his life occurred.

Most people would read the title and think of this book very differently than someone who has read it. They would assume it was a book about his academic achievements when it was really about how he made his life the way he wanted it to be.

The book is named after a Last Lecture that Pausch gave before he died of cancer; he had ten tumors in his liver. Most scholars give this lecture about where they went wrong and how to avoid making the same mistakes, but he instead gave it about living your life and fulfilling your childhood dreams, like he did. He chose to give this lecture because his children at the time were at too young an age to actually have any real memories of his when they grew up, so knowing that the lecture would be recorded, he gave it hoping that later in life his children would watch it and know who their father was.

The book flipped between moments in the lecture and moments of his life. It didn't give the dates of when events occurred that often, but it did tell the reader more details about what happened. The book gives you a lot of detail about Pausch's wedding, how they left in a hot air balloon and almost got hit by a train, but it doesn't have a date for when it happened. The book also tells you how Pausch handled being diagnosed with cancer and how he prepared his family for his death.

This book tells how Pausch managed to achieve all his childhood dreams, and how he helped others achieve theirs. It tells how much he cared for his family and all the little things he did in life, like painting on his walls as a kid. His childhood dreams didn't have a lot in common with each other, but he managed to accomplish them all. Not a lot of people would expect to write an article for the World Book Encyclopedia and be in zero-gravity.

This book informally took you through his life, making it more interesting then it would have been if it had been written like a biography or autobiography. It had lots of humor along with some more serious and sad moments. It shows the kind of person Pausch was very well. It has a more carefree tone then would be expected from a book about a person who was fairly academic.

For a shorter book then most, it still took a few days to read. You have to read at a pace that allows you to understand every detail, since you get too wrapped up in reading about his life that you don't want to miss any details. By the end of it, you really wish that Pausch won't die.

Overall it was a very enjoyable book to read. It could be considered inspiring to some people, those with cancer who are determined to live, or those with dreams that others considered impossible to accomplish. I would recommend it to other people who are looking to read about an amazingly well lived life, especially those who want to know more about how to accomplish their childhood dreams, or those dealing with a family member who has cancer.

It was very well written - easy to read however that part is totally secondary to the message from the author. His thoughts while he faces his own death are ones that each of us should use in our lives now. Don't wait until we're trying to say goodbye. I'll be purchasing more copies to give to friends/family. The minute I was done, I went on the last lecture website as I wasn't ready to let it go yet.