The Meaning of Life: Answers to Life’s Biggest Questions from the World’s Most Extraordinary People

Writers, scientists, artists, politicians, and philosophers opine on the purpose of life in this ho-hum compendium. Inspired by a similar project conducted by historian Will Durant in the 1930s, novelist Bailey (The Way Back to You) surveyed a broad swath of luminaries, as well as less expected subjects, including a former prisoner of war and an injured stuntman, about the meaning of existence. The 100 responses include timeworn wisdom on loving well, serving others, and finding one’s calling. Conservationist Jane Goodall reflects on the individual’s responsibility to protect the environment, and essayist Pico Iyer discusses meditation as a key element of his writing practice (“silence belongs to all of us... and speaks to us at some level deeper than any text or doctrine”). The book surveys an impressively broad range of people—from Tony Wheeler, cofounder of Lonely Planet guidebooks, to Ann Daniels, a record-breaking polar explorer who trained with triplet toddlers at home—though the subjects feel more extraordinary than the advice, which becomes repetitive and trite in aggregate. The result is upbeat but not especially revelatory. Illus. (Dec.)