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Avoid the Autobiography, Skim the Lessons

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This autobiography is not written well, as it focuses too much on small details and fails to find focus. It feels as though Watson is trying to ensure that everyone of his life's moments are captured in the history books before he fossilizes. Lessons from each "stage" of his life are listed at the end of each corresponding chapter and prove to be useful for anyone considering the sciences as a college major or career. even then--take the advice with a grain of salt.

Intelligent and Interesting, but Lacking Likability

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Best known for his Nobel Prize winning work on helping identify the double helix structure of DNA, scientist James D. Watson presents his autobiography Avoid Boring People: Lessons from a Life in Science as an anecdote filled instruction manual - chunking off different segments of his career and then reflecting on the points to be learned from his experiences. The titular phrase "Avoid Boring People" takes on two meanings in the book. Watson advises young scientists to avoid boring people (with the middle word as an adjective) saying that those early in their careers should associate only with people engaging in exciting new science. The second meaning comes as advice to older researchers and Watson warns that in the twilight of their careers, scientists should avoid boring other people - with boring now becoming a verb.

(One wonders if Watson has taken this second piece of advice too far to heart as in recent years his public appearances have kept him newsworthy not for any breakthrough work he has accomplished, but in his ability to anger audiences with racist, sexist, atheistic, and anti-establishment comments. It is only by putting aside my knowledge of his recent personal beliefs that I was able to even open this book for reading, let alone reviewing.)

With that said, Watson does tell an engaging story. The history and science presented are told with a light anecdotal feel and some of the most interesting chapters were the portions of Watson's experience - for example, his work as a presidential science adviser - that were not as highly publicized as his Nobel winning work. I would have enjoyed the book more if Watson had more respect for his female associates. Though some of them are described as "bright" or "intelligent" more often than not these adjectives are proceeded by "cute", "stunning" or "blond". Unlike for his male coworkers, the women in the book have their minds and intellects overshadowed by their looks. Overall, I think the book presents an adequate picture of the life of James Watson which, while intriguing and intelligent, lacks likability.

Excessive amount of details made the book extremely boring

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Avoid Boring People...he definetly bored me though. This book had so much unneccessary detail that it really made the book boring and I disliked it a lot. I would not recommend the purchase of this book, but the 'lessons' learned at the end of each chapter had wisdom behind them and I did like those. There are some interesting parts of the book, especially when he pretty much admits that he did nothing to get the...didn't want to spoil it for the people who will read it.

avoid boring people

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If one looks carefully at the book jacket, another word is inserted in the title which then reads Avoid Boring Other People. Watson was so impressed by his own career and activities that he was truly boring. It is sad that an individual who has been at the heart of his field and who must have had memorable interactions with others spent time trying to make himself interesting.It didn't work.

Witty Whether A Verb Or An Adjective

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An enjoyable trip down Memory Lane, where the sometimes stream-of-consciousness narrative ties events with memorable individuals during a remarkable career inside academia. More like a flat stone skipping across a lake's smooth surface, with few topics covered in depth, and a lot of name dropping, it is a light review of a personal journey starting with early curiosity as a small boy, his early teamwork leading to the elucidation of DNA, through developing talent, and on to managing a leading research institution, using Harvard University as the ultimate point of reference. One of the more interesting observations is the important role of personality in the pursuit of Big Science, particularly the politics of it all. A chronological order of Dr Watson's career in fifteen chapters, with important lessons, both personal and professional, at the end of each, all recapped in a separate section at the end. Many of the names dropped may not be well known now, so the section describing them is very helpful, not only for their own sake but also for a recognition of their contributions that are a part of Dr Watson's life, work and career.