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Get Me Through the Next Five Minutes: Odes to Being Alive
"Parker is articulate and provocative, seeing the poetry in the ordinary and the wonderful in the world." —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"Parker offers some loose advice for living (give money to panhandlers whole-heartedly, because doing so means participating in ‘the same divine economy that big-banged you into being’), but is at his best when poring over life’s strange resonances…pays vivid homage to the beauty of the mundane." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
From the vertiginously talented James Parker, a collection of uproarious odes that show how to find gratitude in unexpected places.
Our politics are broken; our world is melting; the next catastrophe looms. Enter James Parker, who for years now has been writing odes of appreciation on subjects from the seemingly minor (“Ode to Naps”) to the unexpected (“Ode to Giving People Money”) to the seemingly minor, unexpected, and hyperspecific (“Ode to Running in Movies”). Finally collecting Parker’s beloved and much-lauded odes in one place, this volume demonstrates the profound power of the form. Each ode is an exercise in gratitude. Each celebrates the permanent susceptibility of everyday humdrum life to dazzling saturations of divine the squirrel in the street, the crying baby, the misplaced cup of tea. Parker’s odes are songs of praise, but with a decent amount of complaining in there, a human ratio of moans. Varied in length but unified in tone, mostly in prose, sometimes toppling into verse, the odes range across music, movies, literature, psychology, and beyond, all through the lens of Parker’s personal history. Gathered together, they form an accidental how-to guide to honoring your own experience—and to finding your own odes.
"Parker offers some loose advice for living (give money to panhandlers whole-heartedly, because doing so means participating in ‘the same divine economy that big-banged you into being’), but is at his best when poring over life’s strange resonances…pays vivid homage to the beauty of the mundane." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
From the vertiginously talented James Parker, a collection of uproarious odes that show how to find gratitude in unexpected places.
Our politics are broken; our world is melting; the next catastrophe looms. Enter James Parker, who for years now has been writing odes of appreciation on subjects from the seemingly minor (“Ode to Naps”) to the unexpected (“Ode to Giving People Money”) to the seemingly minor, unexpected, and hyperspecific (“Ode to Running in Movies”). Finally collecting Parker’s beloved and much-lauded odes in one place, this volume demonstrates the profound power of the form. Each ode is an exercise in gratitude. Each celebrates the permanent susceptibility of everyday humdrum life to dazzling saturations of divine the squirrel in the street, the crying baby, the misplaced cup of tea. Parker’s odes are songs of praise, but with a decent amount of complaining in there, a human ratio of moans. Varied in length but unified in tone, mostly in prose, sometimes toppling into verse, the odes range across music, movies, literature, psychology, and beyond, all through the lens of Parker’s personal history. Gathered together, they form an accidental how-to guide to honoring your own experience—and to finding your own odes.
226 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 4, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews
July 31, 2024
I relate to this book because I, too, cannot be left alone with my thoughts
Read
May 3, 2025Way more discussion of his dog’s balls than I cared to read.
December 24, 2024
It’s a shame I imposed a deadline for finishing this book because I have to assume it’s meant to be read very slowly, one ode at a time. Instead I read it on audiobook 40 minutes at a time.
It’s really quite humorous and witty.
One takeaway is that I need to go listen to the entirety of The Wall now.
It’s really quite humorous and witty.
One takeaway is that I need to go listen to the entirety of The Wall now.
August 13, 2024
James Parker is the reason I keep my Atlantic subscription. The first time I read one of his odes (balloons), I immediately googled him to see if he had books I could buy--his language even when speaking about the ordinary is gorgeous. I hadn't heard about this coming out, but through sheer luck, I saw an email that he was giving a same-day reading at my local bookstore, so I headed down and bought this. The biographical context of the talk made me appreciate these even more, but I guess either they speak to you or they don't. It's true that they're short, disconnected, and cover a huge range of topics. That's the point. Fans of John Green's The Anthropocene Reviewed should love this, too.
June 6, 2024
This book is a collection of short essays each on a subject as an “Ode”. They are a positive reflection, a way of acknowledging something in a positive light in a light-hearted and quirky way. Most of these first appeared in the Atlantic magazine are collected here for publication as a book.
I had not read anything by James Parker before but the idea and the cover hit my funny-bone for a moment so I picked up the book. I read a few “Odes” a day which is a good way to get through this book.
As with other collections, some are better than others, some will appeal to one or other. I didn’t like the ones that delved deep into soccer and sports, but some fans will likely appreciate that more than myself.
These daily things one would not expect to appreciate held a wide range an example of some - an Ode to: Middle Age, Rushing, Sitting There, Not Meditating, and so on.
Thanks to W.W. Norton and NetGalley for an uncorrected electronic advance review copy of this book.
I had not read anything by James Parker before but the idea and the cover hit my funny-bone for a moment so I picked up the book. I read a few “Odes” a day which is a good way to get through this book.
As with other collections, some are better than others, some will appeal to one or other. I didn’t like the ones that delved deep into soccer and sports, but some fans will likely appreciate that more than myself.
These daily things one would not expect to appreciate held a wide range an example of some - an Ode to: Middle Age, Rushing, Sitting There, Not Meditating, and so on.
Thanks to W.W. Norton and NetGalley for an uncorrected electronic advance review copy of this book.
January 18, 2025
I like this at the start, but it isn't meant to be read in a sitting, meant to be digested an ode at a time, and by the time I got to the middle, I was kind of done.
December 4, 2024
A real treat 😁😂🩶
October 14, 2024
Every time I read Parker-- and I've been scouring his every word since he wrote for the late, beloved Boston Phoenix, which deserve a collection of their own-- my mind's eye is sharpened, the tactile senses of words and the worlds within them heightened, and my soul chuckles.
I would read this every day over breakfast like verses from the Bible. Catholic that he is, an invitation which I personally decline but respect, these are verses from the illuminated pages of life.
"The Odes came at me.
Back in the sweet innocent summer of 2019, before viruses, before politics, before the sagging iceberg had floated over from Greenland and installed itself in your bathtub, my editors at The Atlantic suggested I start doing something regular on the inside back page of the magazine. "Sure thing," I said. "Why don't we call it The Riff? Or The Zoom-In?"
I was imagining a sort of Pollock-y prose explosion, a real showcase/show-off moment for me, the writer. I would riff, go cat go. Or I'd zoom in with my zany critical lens, bearing down upon and then accelerating through something cultural or political or cultural-political, a joke or a line of poetry or a microphone fail or a note from a guitar solo or...
But I wrote some Riffs, and I wrote some Zoom-ins, and they weren't quite right. They lacked the required surface tension. They lacked, in some cases, a point. "How about we call them Odes?" said my editor John Swansburg. It's nice to work with people who are cleverer than you are.
So the Odes were born, and began to find their nature. Short exercises in gratitude. Or in attention, which may in the end be the same thing. Encounters with the ineffable; encounters with the highly friggin' effable. The grace of God: the piece of toast: whatever gets me through the next five minutes. Seeking always what my friend Carlo calls 'the odeness': the essence, the thing of the thing, the quality worth exploring and if possible exalting. Songs of praise, but with (I hoped) a decent amount of complaining in there: a human ration of moans.....
The point, I discovered, is that ode-writing is a two-way street. The universe will disclose itself to you, it will give you occasions for odes, it will blaze with interest and approachability, but you've got to be ode-ready. You've got to bring some twang, some perceptual crispness, some not-worn-out words. Respond to the essence with your essence, with immaculate awareness that is your birthright. And on the days when the immaculate awareness is crap-encrusted, write an ode about that....
How about you? There's an ode somewhere in your area right now. I guarantee it. Lurking, tingling. Right next to you maybe. It wants to pull you out of your wooliness and marry you to specificity. It wants to be written, but only by you. There's an everlasting valentine at the nucleus of creation, and it's got your name on it.
Theoretically, of course, if one keeps going, ode-writing has the potential to provide a complete- and completely insane- map of the writer's experience....
Anyway, if you're reading this book in the bathroom, I wish you a hearty peristalsis. If you're reading it on public transportation, look kindly upon your fellow passengers, annoying as they might be. If you're in prison or in the hospital, hang in there. If you're embroiled in a situation, remember Stevie Smith: "All things must pass/ Love and mankind are grass."
And if you're anywhere, anywhere at all, you're alive-- and we're in this together."
November 13, 2024
Been awhile since I've read a book I can get excited about, but this is one. Parker originally wrote these Odes for publication in The Atlantic magazine. Perhaps I am fond of them as we both belong in an aging demographic; his topics do hit home. But man, he is all over the map and it is a joy ride.
For example, Ode to not meditating, where he explains why it doesn't work for him. Ode to brain farts and giving people money and rushing. Odes to BBQ chips and fridge hum. Ode to running in movies, where he refers to one of my all-time favorite movie scenes in the Last of the Mohicans: Daniel Day-Lewis moving through the forest with the kind of momentum usually reserved for car chases or superheroes. Does it make Parker feel like running? Hell, no. "Let the couch exhale, like a prize-fighter taking one to the kidneys, as you land heavily upon it."
Ode to Squirrels may be my favorite: "you are everywhere, sharing our daylight spaces, offering your weird nibbling commentary. And just because you're paranoid, tiny gargoyle, doesn't mean they're not after you." Tiny gargoyle! And this... "My dog is a threat, a real one...You dodge him always, corkscrewing around a tree trunk or dancing ninja-like along a fence." Corkscrewing! You know exactly what he means.
He's funny, irreverent and with a great eye for overlooked topics.
Such a rewarding read. Great for bedside reading as each ode rarely runs more than 3 pages. A real keeper.
For example, Ode to not meditating, where he explains why it doesn't work for him. Ode to brain farts and giving people money and rushing. Odes to BBQ chips and fridge hum. Ode to running in movies, where he refers to one of my all-time favorite movie scenes in the Last of the Mohicans: Daniel Day-Lewis moving through the forest with the kind of momentum usually reserved for car chases or superheroes. Does it make Parker feel like running? Hell, no. "Let the couch exhale, like a prize-fighter taking one to the kidneys, as you land heavily upon it."
Ode to Squirrels may be my favorite: "you are everywhere, sharing our daylight spaces, offering your weird nibbling commentary. And just because you're paranoid, tiny gargoyle, doesn't mean they're not after you." Tiny gargoyle! And this... "My dog is a threat, a real one...You dodge him always, corkscrewing around a tree trunk or dancing ninja-like along a fence." Corkscrewing! You know exactly what he means.
He's funny, irreverent and with a great eye for overlooked topics.
Such a rewarding read. Great for bedside reading as each ode rarely runs more than 3 pages. A real keeper.
January 3, 2025
In this collection of “odes,” most of which were first published in The Atlantic, James Parker explores the little joys in life, the things we don’t always pay attention to that are proof we should appreciate living more. His odes are really short vignettes exploring topics ranging from banana’s and his dog’s balls to the magical nature of Jimi Hendrix’s music and the saintliness of Dorothy Day.
I picked up this book because I thought it would be interesting to have kids wrote odes to something “small” but impactful, like what Parker explores. I figured this collection would have some mentor texts for me, and it certainly does. I haven’t planned that unit yet, but i still see its potential. That being said, this book didn’t blow me away. What I do appreciate about it, though, is that Parker shares at the beginning that writing this book or this series of odes really instilled in him a habit of paying more attention to the world around him and of appreciating the unexpected beauty there. That, I think, is a beautiful perspective to carry with us. The world can be a scary trash place these days, but savoring the moment in which you crunch a fresh, red fallen leaf underfoot is somewhat of a momentary comfort amidst the chaos.
I picked up this book because I thought it would be interesting to have kids wrote odes to something “small” but impactful, like what Parker explores. I figured this collection would have some mentor texts for me, and it certainly does. I haven’t planned that unit yet, but i still see its potential. That being said, this book didn’t blow me away. What I do appreciate about it, though, is that Parker shares at the beginning that writing this book or this series of odes really instilled in him a habit of paying more attention to the world around him and of appreciating the unexpected beauty there. That, I think, is a beautiful perspective to carry with us. The world can be a scary trash place these days, but savoring the moment in which you crunch a fresh, red fallen leaf underfoot is somewhat of a momentary comfort amidst the chaos.
January 23, 2025
This book collects the "odes" which James Parker wrote for the Atlantic as their unofficial "gratitude correspondent." These odes are mostly for small and specific things, such as taking naps and running in movies, with the purpose of trying to appreciate the small things in life and (as the title suggests) get through the next five minutes.
I feel like the first thing I need to address is that these don't seem much like odes to me in either the traditional or colloquial sense. Almost every ode is a prose essay, which eliminates the traditional "lyric poem" definition. I would also say that most of these odes don't seem to particularly like the experiences they describe. Parker observes the subjects in close detail, but often with as much or more complaining than praise. I went into this expecting something in the same spirit as Ross Gay's Book of Delights, and found myself disappointed by how much Get Me Through the Next Five Minutes seemed to fail to live up to it's own premise. I'm afraid I can't recommend this one, and if the premise sounds interesting I would recommend checking out Gay's book instead.
I feel like the first thing I need to address is that these don't seem much like odes to me in either the traditional or colloquial sense. Almost every ode is a prose essay, which eliminates the traditional "lyric poem" definition. I would also say that most of these odes don't seem to particularly like the experiences they describe. Parker observes the subjects in close detail, but often with as much or more complaining than praise. I went into this expecting something in the same spirit as Ross Gay's Book of Delights, and found myself disappointed by how much Get Me Through the Next Five Minutes seemed to fail to live up to it's own premise. I'm afraid I can't recommend this one, and if the premise sounds interesting I would recommend checking out Gay's book instead.
June 6, 2024
The best. Full stop.
My wife made me stop reading in bed at night since my belly laughter was too disruptive. If you love reading and language, then two things will happen – not necessarily concurrently. First, you'll find yourself paying more attention to the world around you. Initially, the subject of the odes will clue you into all of the joys and sorrows you could be experiencing from the orchestration of life humming (no, roaring) around you. You read Kafka and the world subsequently looks a little different. Same here.
Second, and more surprisingly, you will start to realize that the upon paying attention to life, you begin to pay more attention to language. What is it that makes, for example, an Ode to Mood Swings so remarkable? It's not the idea – but the language that Parker uses to cull humor and odyssey out of life's experiences. You will laugh with hilarity as you read – but upon completion, you will be left with the realization that you, too, have the power to cull the remarkable from the mundane – it's just the words you use to frame it.
My wife made me stop reading in bed at night since my belly laughter was too disruptive. If you love reading and language, then two things will happen – not necessarily concurrently. First, you'll find yourself paying more attention to the world around you. Initially, the subject of the odes will clue you into all of the joys and sorrows you could be experiencing from the orchestration of life humming (no, roaring) around you. You read Kafka and the world subsequently looks a little different. Same here.
Second, and more surprisingly, you will start to realize that the upon paying attention to life, you begin to pay more attention to language. What is it that makes, for example, an Ode to Mood Swings so remarkable? It's not the idea – but the language that Parker uses to cull humor and odyssey out of life's experiences. You will laugh with hilarity as you read – but upon completion, you will be left with the realization that you, too, have the power to cull the remarkable from the mundane – it's just the words you use to frame it.
August 25, 2024
As a book, this was fine. The odes read like quick vignettes on varying topics, and I can see this being the perfect format for a magazine article (which is where a lot of these were originally published). In one volume, though, it got tedious and didn't resonate much with me beyond one or two bits. The author is clearly talented, but jumping from one random opinion to the next gave me reading whiplash. I love the concept of appreciating little things but mostly wanted this to be over.
Please enjoy my favorite quote in the book, which was part of "Ode to Running in Movies":
Content warnings were hard to nail down; brief mentions of a few topics came up, but it was all very quick and infrequent.
Please enjoy my favorite quote in the book, which was part of "Ode to Running in Movies":
"Matt Damon, as Jason Bourne, is a brain-wiped super-soldier having an identity crisis, so he runs like a frightened washing machine."Having seen exactly zero of the Jason Bourne movies, I'm intrigued.
Content warnings were hard to nail down; brief mentions of a few topics came up, but it was all very quick and infrequent.
July 13, 2025
oh my GOD! I loved this book. There's a little snippet on the back that states the two different "parts" of reading this book and it really is true... I started noticing during mundane tasks that I was thinking about the odes I could write to them. Ode to the midnight piss, ode to puking, ode to watering plants, etc, etc.. Also, the writing is just incredible by itself! Parker has an incredible vocabulary, I swear I felt like I was highlighting and pulling out my dictionary every two seconds. His use of poetic imagery, rhythm, and language made his prose pieces stick out in a unique way. Overall, this book is amazing. I feel like, in a way, the book will serve as a mentor to me for the rest of my life.
May 10, 2024
Get Me Through the Next Five Minutes - Odes to Being Alive by James Parker is a great companion for these troubled times. When all around you is going to absolute *insert your chosen expletive here* this book will help you find just the right perspective to make it not seem so utterly awful
If you imagine, Monty Python's "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" in book form, with (if possible) a drier, darker, more satirical wit
A fantastic book and one I shall be carrying around with me, it is just that good
Thank you to Netgalley, W. W. Norton & Company and the excellent author James Parker for this brilliant ARC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own
If you imagine, Monty Python's "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" in book form, with (if possible) a drier, darker, more satirical wit
A fantastic book and one I shall be carrying around with me, it is just that good
Thank you to Netgalley, W. W. Norton & Company and the excellent author James Parker for this brilliant ARC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own
June 20, 2024
Thank you to NetGalley, W. W. Norton & Company, and James Parker for the advanced copy of Get Me Through the Next Five Minutes!
"Each brain fart is a nonsense-holiday, a mini-break in meaninglessness."
This book was fantastic! Topics ranged from an in-depth analysis of the band AC/DC to UFC fighter Conor McGregor to flip phones to constipation and much, much more. This was a great book to pick up and put down and pick up and put down. Easy to read one passage and take a break, but also easy to read several passages in one sitting. Parker gives fascinating and funny perspectives to things we may deem mundane.
"Each brain fart is a nonsense-holiday, a mini-break in meaninglessness."
This book was fantastic! Topics ranged from an in-depth analysis of the band AC/DC to UFC fighter Conor McGregor to flip phones to constipation and much, much more. This was a great book to pick up and put down and pick up and put down. Easy to read one passage and take a break, but also easy to read several passages in one sitting. Parker gives fascinating and funny perspectives to things we may deem mundane.
August 11, 2024
This book is a collection of short essays that can mostly be read in five minutes or less. The breadth of the subject matter chosen made this a book that nearly everyone should be able to relate to at some point. At times I laughed out loud, other times I took a new look at seemingly familiar things. And there were a few times I went "huh?" But overall, I enjoyed the book and recommend it to anyone looking for some fresh perspectives on the world. Thank you Goodreads and WW Norton for the paperback copy.
February 10, 2025
I bought a hard copy version of this book after it was mentioned on Looks 10 Chat 3. I read it in bite sized chunks over several weeks.
The writing was succinct, poetic (but not pretentious), sometimes profound, and funny. James Parker sounds like a funny and interesting person and now I want to read his personal advice column. My only complaints are (1) that some of the sports-focused odes were too long and boring, and (2) that there are not technically odes and would be better named "dedications" or "ode-esque reflections".
The writing was succinct, poetic (but not pretentious), sometimes profound, and funny. James Parker sounds like a funny and interesting person and now I want to read his personal advice column. My only complaints are (1) that some of the sports-focused odes were too long and boring, and (2) that there are not technically odes and would be better named "dedications" or "ode-esque reflections".
May 29, 2025
Unfortunately I didn't really like this. I know it was supposed to be a testament to noticing the little things in life, but I found it really just took up a general feeling of self importance that did not sit well with me. Something about it just felt wrong, and as it went on I found myself both bored and frustrated, and felt the odes lent little importance to any kind of appreciation they may have been striving towards. It felt more like the author was just saying words rather than having any real purpose behind them. I don't know, maybe I missed the point.
April 8, 2024
A reader's mileage may vary with this read. There are specific odes that I absolutely enjoyed including odes to: giving people money, BBQ chips, being dead, small talk and advice columns that all really resonated and others odes less so.
I think that's probably typical of any short book of essays like this. Hard to hit 100% of them out of the park for 100% of readers. Glad I read this!
Thanks to NetGalley for an early copy.
I think that's probably typical of any short book of essays like this. Hard to hit 100% of them out of the park for 100% of readers. Glad I read this!
Thanks to NetGalley for an early copy.
June 11, 2024
I know I am going to get shamed for my review, but this is my opinion and I have a right to it.
I enjoyed the dramatic writing style and maybe 8 of the odes. The rest of the book was just my impression of a whining writer. When it wasn't whiny it was very impressive though. I wish I liked this book more.
Oh I did want to add a thank you for the advance reader copy of this book! Thank you for allowing me to read a book before it is released!
I enjoyed the dramatic writing style and maybe 8 of the odes. The rest of the book was just my impression of a whining writer. When it wasn't whiny it was very impressive though. I wish I liked this book more.
Oh I did want to add a thank you for the advance reader copy of this book! Thank you for allowing me to read a book before it is released!
September 4, 2024
Best if you read around in it, or just read one or two "Odes" at a time? In book format, read one right after the other, these micro essays have the unfortunate effect of seeming too easy, but he clearly pours a lot of heart and brain into each carefully considered ode.
What if this book came to the bathroom with you instead of the phone? And wasn't anywhere near as shitty as most books that used to end up in bathrooms? Intellectual air-freshener! (Spritz, spritz.)
What if this book came to the bathroom with you instead of the phone? And wasn't anywhere near as shitty as most books that used to end up in bathrooms? Intellectual air-freshener! (Spritz, spritz.)
December 2, 2024
This lacked the depth I expected to have based on the title, subtitle, and description. A few resonant lines here and there, but overall failed to deliver a sense of meaning or an appreciation for the quotidian. At times (mostly the lengthy descriptions of sporting events) I was incredibly bored and forced to skim. I think this book could provide a daily reminder to be present and grateful for some folks—I just don’t think I was the authors intended audience.
December 30, 2024
This book contains more than 60 "odes" to a variety of subjects from crying babies and chewing gum to hugs and procrastination. I didn't read more than a dozen before getting tired of them. They didn't seem to have much meaningful content, and came at me like the ball in a dodge ball contest. A few like the ode to Pablo Neruda and the ode to the inevitable are written in poetic form but most are in prose. I'm taking this one back to the library.
January 15, 2025
I wanted a quick, light read and this delivered. It's not profound by any means, but it was joyous. It was a good start to a new year - a reminder to look at the world around you with wonder. It definitely helped that the author was a Gen X nerd. He had many of the same interests as my spouse, so it was also a comforting read. This has also encouraged me to write my own small odes or observations over at least the next 30 days.
July 26, 2024
I just didn't get the book. There were odes to a farting horse, hotel, rooms, balloons, crying babies, flip phones, being dead, squirrels, cold showers, etc. The only ode that I found mildly interesting was about "the unexpected reversal" that was written about Colin McGregor and the UFC. I thought this was going to be a book of interesting essays – – it wasn’t...
February 20, 2025
A book about the joys & sorrows of being alive. Made me laugh, made me cry, made me look forward desperately to Jesus coming back while simultaneously thanking him for the small gifts of grace he gives us every day. I read so many of these out loud to Christopher that I think he got sick of it. But it was simply such a pleasure to read & some of them just beg to be shared.
May 31, 2025
Rounded up from 2.5. This one is a mixed bag of short odes to many different topics. A few are great, like Ode to Giving People Money and Ode to Taking it Seriously. Many are “mid”. I found it weird that two of the longest Odes focused on dog testicles and UFC fighting.
It’s a relatively quick read, yet overall not a “banger”.
It’s a relatively quick read, yet overall not a “banger”.
July 16, 2024
I was just expecting something different I think. Dry funny author but not really a book I was able to sit down and read like a story, which it isn’t a story. I like the concept of the book. But found myself passing a lot of “odes”
December 12, 2024
Really enjoyed some of the poems in this. I really related them to my life outside the confines of “what they were intended to be about”. The author is quite a good writer although I do wish each poem was not so limited within the confines of “an ode to the left hand. A crying baby etc”
Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews