Goodreads Mobile | see what your friends are reading

Jan 01, 2009

Jaymi rated it:

(Adapted from www.diyplanner.com)
Last month, I was reading an article about Daniel Pink and how he went to Japan to study the art and culture surrounding Japanese comics, otherwise known as manga. He was interested in the format's popularity; this was a book format that people of all ages enjoyed reading. He studied the culture and the form to see how it could be applied to other disciplines successfully. The Adventures of Johnny Bunko is the result of that study. This introductory guide on More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Sep 25, 2011

Dore' rated it:

Part advice guide, part career guide, The Adventures of Johnny Bunko, can help young people navigate the real world before they get there. Daniel Pink, the author of Drive, helps explain life with his patented life lessons. From "There is no plan" (not to be confused with "Don't make any plans"), to "Make excellent mistakes," students quickly learn that life often takes unexpected detours.

The book is done in a manga-esque black-and-white style with ea More...

0 comments like

Jun 06, 2010

Beth rated it:

I had to check this book out for myself. As a veteran career counselor, I wanted to see what career advice could be given in graphic novel format. The premise was cute, but I had trouble agreeing with the very first tenant: "There is no plan". There is always SOME sort of plan, otherwise people would accomplish nothing. I am not a big fan of knowing what I'm going to do from hour to hour and like room for spontaneity, BUT if Johnny Bunko had no plan, he would have just sat in his p More...

0 comments like

May 31, 2010

Caren rated it:

Told in the style of Japanese manga, this is Daniel Pink's advice to high school/college students or other young people just beginning their careers. When Johnny visits a Japanese restaurant and breaks apart his wooden chopsticks, a magic girl, Diana, materializes to offer him advice. She tells him that when he needs help, he need only snap apart another pair of chopsticks and she will appear. During the course of the book and her appearances, Pink chalks up six pieces of advice for those plotti More...

0 comments like

May 09, 2010

Reid rated it:

Overall: Like Pink's other works, the revelations of Johnny Bunko aren't quite as revolutionary as I anticipated. High expectations aside, however, this is a good little story that makes some broad but insightful points about career paths and uses a new medium (manga) to do it. The artwork is good (Rob Ten Pas is the artist) and surprisingly funny. I actually laughed aloud several times, just because of a goofy illustration, like when Johnny gets clocked with a stapler. The book has fun wit More...

0 comments like

May 15, 2009

Bob rated it:

Reading the NY Times Magazine one Sunday, Amy asked over the breakfast table: "have you ever heard of Daniel Pink?" I had not. She insisted that I get his books and read them. The article she was reading (on early childhood education) cited Pink on the importance of creativity to our contemporary culture. The article addressed kids in particular (for instance, said the report: even if kids test high on academic achievement at age 5, this is no indicator of future academic success, More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Nov 29, 2010

Derek rated it:

The Adventures of Johnny Bunko is a quick, fun valuable guide to thinking about career choices and how to find work that is fulfilling and meaningful. The graphic novel format seemed gimmicky at first, but then I thought of the "leadership fables" of Ken Blanchard and Patrick Lencioni, and the younger target audience for the book, and suddenly it made perfect sense. As in A Whole New Mind, Pink does a great job of taking deep, complicated concepts, and making them pithy and accessible. More...

0 comments like

May 09, 2009

Serri rated it:

This book was recommended by my colleague's father, who is a college professor, and was particularly interesting to me on two levels.

First, Daniel Pink, author of A Whole New Mind, made a point of identifying six important skills sets that individuals will need to be successful in the future (Design, Story, Symphony, Empathy, Play, and Meaning--have to read the book to get the full understanding of each, but I highly recommend it). From a 30,000-foot view, Pink applied his own Whol More...

0 comments like

Jan 02, 2009

Becky rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like

Jul 29, 2011

Gina rated it:

I love this book. Daniel Pink is a right-on author when it comes to spotting the trends that will define work in the coming years. Here he has managed to take those big ideas and distill them into 6 basic tenets--Manga Style.

I am not a Manga Fan--so some of the lingo/shorthand of this format may have been lost on me--but I certainly walked away with enough meat to appreciate this effort.

In an age where workers are faced with outsourcing and the end of the 40 years to a Gold Watch Plan, we ha More...

0 comments like

Mar 09, 2010

Eric rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like

Jun 26, 2011

Zigforas marked it as to-read

“You can do something for instrumental reasons– because you think it’s going to lead to something else, regardless of whether you enjoy it or it’s worthwhile… or you can do something for fundamental reasons– because you think it’s inherently valuable, regardless of what it may or may not lead to. The dirty little secret is that instrumental reasons usually don’t work. Things are too complicated, too unpredictable. You never know what’s going to happen. So you end up stuck. The most successful pe More...

0 comments like

Jun 12, 2011

Poonam rated it:

I think art work was good and narrative was fine. But, by way of content, I found it bit superficial. It has 6 take-aways that when it comes to one's career:

1. There is no plan.
2. Think strengths, not weakness. (That is work what you are good at rather than where you have to work on weaknesses.)
3. It's not about you. (Contribute to team, project et al.)
4. Persistence trumps talent. (No, it doesn't contradict 2. Think about it.)
5.Make excellent mistakes.
6 More...

0 comments like

Mar 03, 2010

Jackie rated it:

This is a novel way to get students thinking about how to choose a career. Very wise advice.

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jun 23, 2010

Klara rated it:

I've noticed reviewers on several websites criticizing this volume because it offers only "obvious" or "common sense" sort of advice for succeeding at work. This might be true for people who have spent enough time in the working world to pick up on which particular traits lead to success and which to failure; college students and anyone else just starting a career, however, need not agree. As a college student with no real work experience myself, I found the book's advice use More...

0 comments like

Feb 02, 2012

Wendy rated it:

I LOVE the overall message of this book! So many people think that they have to take a certain career path that really isn't necessarily the best thing for them. This book gives six lessons that help clarify how someone should approach career decisions. As I read it, I realized that I've been following this exact guidance my whole life when it comes to business/career decisions. The fun thing about this book, is that it's written in comic book form, and so it's really great for a teenage aud More...

0 comments like

Jul 22, 2010

Elizabeth rated it:

As a student of the graphic novel, I kind of find this insulting; especially since a lot of non-comic people are going pick this up, and judge the entire genre based on this tripe.

Is the advice legit? Sure. One of the only redeeming qualities of the book is that it takes five seconds to read, unlike most career guides that pretty long winded; of course, if you want good examples, and maybe a personal story or two, then you should read the four-hour workweek (even if he is a bit of a na More...

0 comments like

Jan 15, 2009

Maya rated it:

For what this is- this book is brilliant.

What it is? It's a self-help career guide. Mr. Pink, a former White House speech writer, elected to use the Manga storytelling style to reach his specified audience in a unique way. His justification- Why we read a book if you can do a google search?

In 6 deliberately fast reading segments, Pink discusses the following principles:
1. There is no plan
2. Think strengths- not weaknesses
3. It's not about you
4. Pe More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

May 13, 2011

esterb rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like

Mar 22, 2009

Madeofmeat rated it:

I read this entire book in the aisle at Powell's and still shelled out $15 for it. Seriously. This is an excellent little career guide, delivered as a narrative in manga form. At the end of each chapter, a new point is distilled and made clear, and summed up with the existing points from previous chapters. They're clear and simple and the narrative is enjoyable to read. Best example point? "Fail excellently." Meaning, you should definitely take risks, but they should be risks wh More...

0 comments like

Feb 19, 2011

James rated it:

What makes this book different than other career books is it presents in a comic book format. You follow the main character as he struggles with his career even though he has followed "The Plan". After he encounters a genie he is slowly able to find what makes him happy.

Pretty standard career advice in this book but it is presented in a way that makes it fun and memorable. Also this being a quick read it's hard not to recommend this to people who need that career inspiration More...

0 comments like

Feb 16, 2009

Megan rated it:

This is an excellent book. By the time I got to it, I was past most of the information in it -- but as a starter "text", this would have been rockin' to receive right out of school. (In fact, I suggest you hand it to the next person you see walking out of a big educational institution or corporate cube-farm.)

Incidentally, I had something to do with the proposed Lesson Seven. You can read about it here. (We won, by the way!) More...

0 comments like

Oct 05, 2008

Christine rated it:

I'm ALWAYS having some sort of career crisis or another. This is a career guide that distinguishes itself mainly by the Manga (Japanese comic) format. 20% of all printed material in Japan is manga so it's not too unusual that they would have career guides the same way.

From a culture (both Japanese and American) that puts heavy meaning into academia, career, and success it takes a lot to take a step back and really examine the job one is in currently and the goals that one wants t More...

0 comments like

Sep 07, 2008

Adam rated it:

not so bad. basic lessons for approaching career life. stuff i'd heard before from various sources. SUCH AS : recognize your strengths (or something like that), and um... well can't recall what else, but most likely from talking to "old" people in careerage. OH YES! and Colin Powell's Lessons in Leadership. too bits and pieces of Art of War. Another book what was it, more of an artsy tilt, but good impact AND one of the "lessons" in that book I ACTUALLY USE something along th More...

0 comments like

Aug 18, 2008

Nicholas rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like

Oct 09, 2011

Leanna rated it:

This was the first comic book/graphic novel(?)/manga I've ever read. I think there's a reason - the genre doesn't really click with me because I have a hard time with the words being all over the place. But a friend gave me the book and I'm glad a took the hour or so to read it. The career advice (life advice, really) is good and gave me a lot to think about. As I'm looking for a new job, I think I'll have to keep it handy so I can refer back to Diana's career advice from time to time.

0 comments like

May 11, 2011

Lareese rated it:

It is a book that is not quite sure who its audience is, but speaks to everyone, regardless. I am a sucker for a quick read that reinforces some things that I already know. Sometimes you need to hear it again and again... Focus on your strengths... It's not about you... And sprinkled in there are things that I knew but didn't really think about - persistence trumps talent being one of them. It is the truth and someday I will learn that lesson - if I am persistent.

0 comments like

Dec 23, 2010

Robert rated it:

Daniel Pink, The Adventures of Johnny Bunko: The Last Career Guide You'll Ever Need (Riverhead Books, 2008)

Fun, if lightweight, manga-style career guide from business writer Pink (Drive, A Whole New Mind). Johnny Bunko is a drone at his company who finds out he can summon a career-minded genie by opening disposable chopsticks. If only we all had that ability (especially given that she's so manga-cute one of his co-workers falls for her immediately). Each time Johnny summons her, she im More...

0 comments like

Feb 09, 2011

Peter rated it:

It was a fun and easy read about 6 lessons that people should know about their careers all done in Manga style. I probably would have never picked up this book if I hadn't seen it on a bunch of "must read" lists about career advice. I usually try to stay away from Manga. The lessons were pretty basic knowledge (at least in my opinion) done in a fun way.

To sum it up best I'm glad I got this from the library and didn't waste $9.50.

0 comments like

Feb 20, 2010

Rosalia rated it:

This was a fun book that tells the story of Johnny Bunko, a guy who thinks he did everything right in his career path and has still ended up unhappy. This book gives Johnny advice through Diana; a genie type creature that appears whenever he breaks his chopsticks apart. As long as the reader remembers to look past the light hearted tone of the book and focus on the advice as well, then this is well worth the read.

0 comments like

reviews