I'm not a memoir reader. But this was gifted to me during a happy hour, when my defenses were down and I was probably more excited than normal to receive a gift. All jokes aside, I will admit that one of my favorite books, The Glass Castle, is a memoir, so when Greenlights arrived in my audible account, I decided to waive judgment. But I felt like, of all the memoirs out there, is McConaughey's really going to be the one to change my life (as promised during said happy hour)?
I'll admit, having McConaughey narrate his book makes it ten times better. You literally hear his drawl and get all the nuances, jokes, and emotions he conveys on the written page. His penchant for writing is clear, as his stories, anecdotes, and poems roll off the tongue with ease. He has the voice of a spoken word performer, and given that his upcoming book is a collection of his poems, that doesn't surprise me.
His stories show his free spirit and big heart. His entrance into acting and later success seem oddly coincidental, as he got into acting in his 20s and might have just been in the right place at the right time. His overall theme of recognizing the green lights in your life and turning red and yellow lights into green was a great metaphor for life's ups and downs. And it was fun to hear him tell a story and then proudly declare, "green light!".
But at the end of the day, will this book change my life? No. Was I entertained while reading it? Yes. I'd definitely recommend the audio version though to get the full effect.
