Genre: Fiction

While on our U.K. tour in April 2017 we spent a couple of days in Oxford. What could be a better souvenir than a book! I stumbled upon this second hand addition and at the time I could not remember what the story was about. But I had it on my “to read” list and I liked the cover illustration, so I decided to give it a try.

The short version: Sophie is about to turn fifteen when something odd happens. She receives a postcard addressed to a girl named Hilde and some papers on philosophy. Without telling anyone, Sophie joins Albert Knox’s philosophy course. Her quirky and somewhat mysterious teacher takes her on a fantastical journey through the history of philosophy. As Sophie learns about philosophy, the world she thought she knew and understood starts to change. Things are not what they seem.

You should know that this book is philosophy 101 structured around a quirky story. In my opinion, that works; I really enjoyed it. I loved that the philosophy lessons were packed into digestible chunks. If you’re curious about the basics of philosophy, this could be a good starting point. I decided not read the book in one sitting due to the volume of information. At times I found that Sophie’s bizarre little story (and I am all for bizarre little stories) dragged a little, but I think it’s mostly because I took my time reading the book and I read other books while I was busy with this one. Not something I normally do. My book has since found a new home in my sister’s library.