''Greenlights'' is a 2020 book by American actor

Matthew McConaughey Matthew David McConaughey ( ; born November 4, 1969) is an American actor. He had his breakout role with a supporting performance in the coming-of-age comedy '' Dazed and Confused'' (1993). After a number of supporting roles, his first succes ...

. It was published on October 20, 2020, by the Crown imprint of

Crown Publishing Group The Crown Publishing Group is a subsidiary of Penguin Random House that publishes across several fiction and non-fiction categories. Originally founded in 1933 as a remaindered books wholesaler called Outlet Book Company, the firm expanded into ...

Background

McConaughey exiled himself in the desert without electricity for fifty-two days while writing the book. ''Greenlights'' originated from diaries and journals McConaughey began writing when he was fourteen years old. McConaughey described the book as a collection of "stories, prayers, poems, people and places and a whole bunch of bumper stickers." The book includes stories and insights from McConaughey's life in chronological order. It has been described as a memoir but McConaughey has called it an "approach book".

Reception

The book was a major best-seller, debuting at number one on ''The New York Times'' nonfiction best-seller list for the week ending October 24, 2020. As of February 2022, the book has spent 55 weeks on the list. Mark Athitakis of ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' called McConaughey's poetry "cringeworthy" and criticized his wisdom for being unrelatable, calling the book "stuffed with vaporous, circular proverbs for would-be McConaugheys." In their review, ''

The Times of India ''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the third-largest newspaper in India by circulation and largest ...

'' wrote, "The writing is conversational and easy to read, though this is one book whose audiobook form is worth listening to. The actor/author reads it himself, with the correct inflections and even does voices. It's truly entertaining." In an interview with McConaughey, Canadian psychologist

Jordan Peterson Jordan Bernt Peterson (born 12 June 1962) is a Canadian media personality, clinical psychologist, author, and professor emeritus at the University of Toronto. He began to receive widespread attention as a public intellectual in the late 2010s ...

said that the book was "a collection of great stories".

References

2020 non-fiction books English-language books American memoirs Crown Publishing Group books Show business memoirs {{memoir-stub