The Good Neighbor, The Life and Work of Fred Rogers
Narrated by: LeVar Burton
Pages: 416
Genre: Nonfiction, Biography
Book description (from Good Reads): Fred Rogers (1928–2003) was an enormously influential figure in the history of television and in the lives of tens of millions of children. As the creator and star of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, he was a champion of compassion, equality, and kindness. Rogers was fiercely devoted to children and to taking their fears, concerns, and questions about the world seriously.
The Good Neighbor, the first full-length biography of Fred Rogers, tells the story of this utterly unique and enduring American icon. Drawing on original interviews, oral histories, and archival documents, Maxwell King traces Rogers’s personal, professional, and artistic life through decades of work, including a surprising decision to walk away from the show to make television for adults, only to return to the neighborhood with increasingly sophisticated episodes, written in collaboration with experts on childhood development. An engaging story, rich in detail, The Good Neighbor is the definitive portrait of a beloved figure, cherished by multiple generations.
Thoughts:
I have never seen the show or knew anything about Fred Rogers, it might be because of the lack of commercialization of the show. But getting to know the man behind the hard work dedicated to helping children and educating them through tv was delightful.
The man sounds amazing and after starting to read about the way he built his dream from nothing and how it evolved throughout his life was very inspiring. He was one of the first pioneers who wanted to have quality tv programs aimed at children and he cared not only about being educational but about the children's mental health.
The audiobook narration was incredible, the volume and pace of the retelling in certain places was so on point reflecting the way the great man might have sounded while dealing or behaving towards children. Unfortunately, it felt like it was longer than it was necessary, some things felt included to make more words, but highly unnecessary. But still, the life of a great man is still something I wanted to get to know more about so I pushed through and finished the book but I was very close to stop reading and come back at a later time, it did take me longer than I expected to get through because even when the life of Mr Fred Rogers was something I was really interested in, the way it was written made it a bit difficult to get through. Though, picking the book and actually reading it might make it more of a shore, if possible pick the audio. It does make it better to get through.
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