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Greenlights

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Greenlights

By: Matthew McConaughey
Narrated by: Matthew McConaughey
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About this listen

From the Academy Award®-winning actor, an unconventional memoir filled with raucous stories, outlaw wisdom, and lessons learned the hard way about living with greater satisfaction.

I've been in this life for 50 years, been trying to work out its riddle for 42, and been keeping diaries of clues to that riddle for the last 35. Notes about successes and failures, joys and sorrows, things that made me marvel, and things that made me laugh out loud. How to be fair. How to have less stress. How to have fun. How to hurt people less. How to get hurt less. How to be a good man. How to have meaning in life. How to be more me.

Recently, I worked up the courage to sit down with those diaries. I found stories I experienced, lessons I learned and forgot, poems, prayers, prescriptions, beliefs about what matters, some great photographs, and a whole bunch of bumper stickers. I found a reliable theme, an approach to living that gave me more satisfaction, at the time, and still: If you know how, and when, to deal with life's challenges - how to get relative with the inevitable - you can enjoy a state of success I call 'catching greenlights.'

So I took a one-way ticket to the desert and wrote this book: an album, a record, a story of my life so far. This is fifty years of my sights and seens, felts and figured-outs, cools and shamefuls. Graces, truths, and beauties of brutality. Getting away withs, getting caughts, and getting wets while trying to dance between the raindrops.

Hopefully, it's medicine that tastes good, a couple of aspirin instead of the infirmary, a spaceship to Mars without needing your pilot's license, going to church without having to be born again, and laughing through the tears.

It's a love letter. To life.

It's also a guide to catching more greenlights-and to realising that the yellows and reds eventually turn green too.

Good luck.

The audiobook now includes an exclusive interview with Matthew McConaughey which was recorded during his book tour in 2021.

©2020 Matthew McConaughey (P)2020 Penguin Audio
Entertainment & Celebrities Entertainment & Performing Arts Film & TV Celebrity Inspiring Funny Entertainment Feel-Good Heartfelt Thought-Provoking Witty Success

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Critic reviews

"Unflinchingly honest and remarkably candid, Matthew McConaughey's book invites us to grapple with the lessons of his life as he did - and to see that the point was never to win, but to understand." (Mark Manson, author of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck)

"McConaughey is a talented actor and a fine writer, but a total genius at living. He attacks life with an exhilarating ferocity. This is a wildly unexpected and delightful book you can't just read, you have to experience." (Lawrence Wright, author of The End of October)

"It shouldn't surprise you that this book is good, but it will surprise you just how good it is. Wise and entertaining, this is an inspiring memoir and how-to from one of the great outlaw philosophers and artists of our time." (Ryan Holiday, author of The Daily Stoic)

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Beautifully written and narrated by Matthew McConaughey, I have both the audiobook and the hardback on release date so listening to the voice I was able to look at the images, scans, photos and handwritten notes contained in the book as well.

This account of a life being lived, enjoyed and embraced whilst not being for sale is filled with sincerity, warmth and humility.

In Matthew’s own words, it’s a love letter to life, and listening all the way to the end, I really felt that is true.

I do not fan celebrities at all, especially Hollywood ones or typical A listers, but this voice was played to me at a time in my life when I needed to hear it so I was excited to get to know the full soul behind that personal experience for me.

There are lots of motivational videos online featuring this man’s voice.

The book is fast pace and a true page turner, I finished it in the one day and feel nothing but warmth and uplifted.

Thankful to have had this experience today.

A great read / listen.

Five stars from me.

Long Overdue Window to Sincerity

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I suggest you check you preconception at the door, fasten your seat belts for the McConaughey show, exit a better version of yourself, Rinse, repeat if necessary, The books good, funny, painful, as is life... thanxs Matthew.

Read this book, Greenlight...

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I thought it was unusual that the reviews I read were polar opposites; some people loved it, some people hated it. I agree with both sides though, I hated the first half an hour or so, it was fast and rambling and it bothered me that he defended his parents use of physical abuse to discipline their children, this is something I feel strongly about but I'm a persistent reader and I persevered and quite enjoyed the book overall. It is autobiographical but it won't give you Hollywood stories or discuss friendships with other actors. It's more like a long motivational speech interspersed with anecdotes from his past. I like his positivity and although I can see how other readers may think he's full of himself, I think it's important to remember to stay positive no matter what life throws at you. Unfortunately for the rest of, us who are not in the position to turn down 14 million dollar film roles because of our principles, it may feel a little far removed from the average readers reality.

Bear with it!

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This book gave me a warm feeling inside, every minute of the way. Matthew you’re a very humbling person and I’m thankful that you took the time to write this book. I went into it one person and came out a slightly more enlightened one. I recommend this book to everyone.

Thank you McConaughey

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I'd rate it a 3.5 if I could. A 3 wasn't fair and 4 perhaps too strong. A good listen, one set back was how Mathew shouts at the beginning of each chapter. Ohhh and his terrible aussia accent 🙈

3.5 stars

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