The Guinea Pig Diaries: My Life as an Experiment

by A.J. Jacobs

For his first book, The Know-It-All, A. J. Jacobs read the entire Encyclopædia Britannica from cover to cover in a quest to learn everything in the world. In The Year of Living Biblically, he followed every single rule of the Bible -- from the Ten Commandments right on down to stoning adulterers.

Now comes a collection of his most hilarious and thought-provoking experiments yet. In his role as human guinea pig, Jacobs fearlessly takes on a series of life-altering challenges that provides readers with equal parts insight and humor. (And which drives A.J.'s patient wife, Julie, to the brink of insanity.)

Among the many adventures:

• He outsources his life. A.J. hires a team of people in Bangalore, India, to take care of everything in his life from answering his e-mails to arguing with his spouse.
• He spends a month practicing Radical Honesty -- a movement that encourages us to remove the filters between our brains and mouths. (To give you an idea of what happened, the name of the chapter is "I Think You're Fat.")
• He goes to the Academy Awards disguised as a movie star to understand the strange and warping effects of fame.
• He commits himself to ultimate rationality, using cutting-edge science to make the best decisions possible. It changes the way he makes choices big and small, from what to buy at the grocery store to how to talk to his kids. And his revelations will change how you make decisions, too.
• He attempts to follow George Washington's rules of life, uncovering surprising truths about leadership and politics in the twenty-first century. He also spends a lot of time bowing and doffing his hat.
• And then there's the month when he followed his wife's every whim -- foot massages, Kate Hudson movies, and all. Depending on your point of view, it's either the best or worst idea in the history of American marriage.
A mix of Bill Bryson, George Plimpton, and Malcolm Gladwell, A.J. explores the big issues of our time -- happiness, dating, morality, marriage -- by immersing himself in eye-opening situations. You'll be entertained by these stories -- some of which are new, some of which had their start in Esquire magazine. But you'll also learn to look at life in new ways.

The Guinea Pig Diaries is a book packed with both laughs and enlightenment -- and that's a promise we can make with Radical Honesty.

Genres: Nonfiction, Humor, Memoir, Biography, Essays, Audiobook, Science

236 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Petra X · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book for a gift or to read on the plane. It's funny, somewhat informative and finishes with an essay at the end by the author's long-suffering but not necessarily quiet or patient wife. It's better than The Know-It-All (which was pretty good) in which AJ attempts to read the Encyclopaedia Britannica. But its not as good as A Year of Living Biblically - dressed in a long robe with sandals and a wild beard he makes some serious points while making a total fool of himself and writing about it.

I look forward to his next book, guaranteed humour with a definite analytical edge.

[Lena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Esquire editor A. J. Jacobs is a practitioner of the stunt memoir. In Guinea Pig, he moves away from the year-long Bible and Britannica experiments he became known for to a series of month-long explorations on different topics.

Among his experiments in this book are impersonating his ultra-hot nanny in an online dating service, living according to George Washington's detailed list of personal rules, posing naked for Esquire at the request of Mary-Louise Parker, outsourcing much of his life to virtual Indian assistants, attempting to root out common cognitive biases and live a more rational life, and paying back his wife for putting up with his experimental quirks by doing everything she asks him to for a month.

Jacobs' style is highly readable and often amusing. But it was really the subject matter that kept me going throughout this book - the experiments he undertakes are meaty enough to be genuinely interesting despite their stunt quality. Jacobs pursues his quests with sincerity and shares real insights about what he learns as he does. It's not a particularly deep book, but there is still some wisdom to be gleaned from what he discovered while embracing different ways of doing things.

[♥Xeni♥ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finished this book in record time. It was very easy to read, had a good pace (sometime too good of a pace... more details in some areas, please!) and was amusing while also being educational.

I think I will try implementing some of Jacobs' ideas into my own life. Perhaps not to the extent that he decided to, but there are quite a lot of Washington's Rules which are still applicable! That, and finding a very rational toothpaste is something I've been trying to do for years. Okay, so perhaps I already have a lot of the more positive traits in my own life. Still, adding a few more couldn't hurt! (*cough* you did want to start meditating, Xeni! *cough*)


I found this book via my friend Kim, who posted that he wanted to find a copy in the group, Literary Exploration. I'm glad I found a copy before he did, so now I can gush about how awesome it is! (And it definitely is awesome, Kim!) Anyway, it was a great find. I am sure I'll read the author's other two books... especially when he starts stoning adulterers!

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was planning on reading The Year of Living Biblically by the same author, but The Guinea Pig Diaries by A.J. Jacobs was here and the other hasn't come in the mail yet.

However, I'm glad I read this first because I LOVED it! I think we should all read it. It chronicles the author's life as he (1) pretends to be a woman on a dating Web site, (2) outsources his personal life to assistants in India (including a book trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKSXdD... ), (3) tries Radical Honesty, (4) pretends to be a celebrity at an awards ceremony, (5) tries to make every decision completely rationally without feeling, (6) poses for a naked photo shoot, (7) lives by George Washington's personal rules for life, (8) tries not to multitask at all and finally (9) is his wife's slave for a month.

I liked it because he is a journalist (actually an editor at Esquire magazine) and he backs up all of his ideas and conclusions with interviews with professionals in different areas and by referencing lots of books. There is a full bibliography in the back, as well as a full list of George Washington's rules, etc.

Not only do I feel way more knowledgeable than before I read the book, it was really funny and entertaining -- I actually laughed out loud quite a few times.

It also gave me some perspective on life and made me think about my actions in ways I haven't before. It's hard to explain without you guys having read the book, but it just put things in a different perspective -- ironically, kind of the point of The Lost Symbol lol.

I felt like every chapter related to my own life and it actually made me want to make improvements lol.

I seriously think everyone should read this book. It was light and easy but seriously life changing -- at the very least it will make any reader put their actions into a perspective they may have never thought of before.

I think we should all read this together -- I wouldn't mind. I would actually like a chance to read this again and try to implement some of the things he tries into my own life. I'm seriously addicted to this guy and I will probably end up reading everything he's written.

Overall rating -- A+.

Check out the author's Web site for more info on this and his other books, including The Year of Living Biblically and The Know-it-all. He also has a Twitter account that he actually updates, unlike most celebrities/authors.

[K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, I don't want to oversell this book or anything. It didn't quite live up to its predecessor, The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible As Literally As Possible. But life with A.J. Jacobs is always fun, at least if you're a reader and not his long-suffering wife Julie (who does get hers in the end, happily).

With his trademark earnestness, A. J. Jacobs throws himself into a variety of life experiments, occasionally shocking or annoying unwitting bystanders. He poses on-line as a beautiful woman and off-line in the nude (ever wonder what that would be like? Me neither, but now I know). He outsources his life, including arguing with Julie, and experiments with radical honesty and hyperrationality. Some chapters, such as trying to live like George Washington, were stretching it a little but mostly this was fun and a quick read which is always a plus for me as I perpetually lag behind on my goodreads challenge. (Hey -- maybe I should write a book about my year spent trying to read 100 books for goodreads. No, really -- I have all kinds of moral dilemmas, like is it cheating if I read a chick lit book because I know I can rack it up quickly? Should I count the books that I skim or can't finish? Too bad I'm not A. J. Jacobs.)

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

The third of A.J. Jacobs life-experiment books, unlike the others which focused on one idea only, this book encompasses a variety of different experiments A.J. makes with his life.

Firstly I enjoyed this one a lot more than The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible As Literally As Possible. There was a lot more humour in this one and it flowed much better. His last book just felt overly long whereas here each experiment is only fairly short. I also like the codas at the end as I'd previously read his outsourcing article before and it was good to get an update on it.

He has some really interesting points and things I want to look at in my own life. Whilst I don't want to be Radically Honest I believe a bit more honesty wouldn't be a bad thing and that maybe unitasking occasionally would give my brain a break.

A short but entertaining read I would recommend this one is worth reading.

[Abbyofgail · Rating 3 out of 5]

aj jacobs is the man. yeah yeah yeah he's kind of a tool, he recycles his jokes, whatever. anyone willing to spend a month checking his email with the TV, phone, and radio off is a hero in my book (see the chapter on unitasking).
i must say i liked this one significantly less that his other two. the problem laid in the fact that each experiment is only devoted a short essay rather than a whole book. don't get me wrong, i doubt i would enjoy an entire book about what it was like posing naked for a magazine (meh) or pretending to be a celebrity for a night (double meh). the problem is that what seemed to get cut out in the process of whittling these stories down was the stuff that i enjoyed the most (the quips, insights, innuendos). in fact, while the other two books have page numbers down the entire frontspiece of quotes i found particularly hilarious, this one has a measly two ("Plus, in one of his emails, the guy said he didn't like pancakes. What kind of asshole doesn't like pancakes?" and "Paintings! They're like TV, but they don't move.")
my favorite story by far was the one where jacobs lived as george washington. while it was decidedly anti-Jefferson (which i, as a native charlottesvillian, must take the deepest offense to), it made me want to a)go out and learn more about washington and b)be a better person (or try anyway). my second favorite essay was written by his wife, julie, about what it was like living with this guy. she's just as talented and funny as he is...someone give that lady a book deal!
overall, it's not the one i would pick up first. or second. but it's still pretty good. and everyone does love pancakes.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

In The Guinea Pig Diaries, A.J. Jacobs collates article length stunt memoirs originally published in Esquire. He runs his very attractive nanny's online dating account, he hires an outsourced personal assistant, he tries radical honesty. There is a sort of low-hanging fruit/ life hack culture at work here in which change must always be a sort of wry free lunch rather than the result of deep commitment or personal sacrifice. Having said that, the essays are engaging and often humorous, so perhaps Jacobs' method will lead to more converts than more earnest writing. And at times, the conclusions are more powerful. When he serves his wife for a month, for example, Jacobs notes that his behavior changes his thinking. Rather than bickering with his wife he speaks more agreeably to her and they fight less. Although I often found the essays funny, I hope Jacobs will move on from Esquire. Their style is a bit monotonous, especially their kickers and the way their writers will note personal responses like "which makes me feel inadequate." How did a magazine that used to publish James Baldwin's essays become this publishing house for frat bros transitioning into family men with flat irony? Regardless, I will try to find more of Jacobs' work.

A final note. I listened to Jacobs' interview on the 80000 Hours podcast and liked it. It's like two hours long, but you'll get a sense of him within the first half.

[Judith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had read another book by this author: "Drop Dead Healthy", and I thoroughly enjoyed it. So when I read a positive review by my GR friend Thomas Edmund, I decided to check it out. This guy cracks me up and when an author can provoke laughing out loud, he gets 4 stars regardless of the subject matter. This book is really funny but interesting at the same time. Jacobs has an unquenchable curiosity and the willingness and energy to pursue an idea to its ultimate end. For example, in the chapter on "My Outsourced Life", he outsourced to assistants in India every task he could think of, including arguing with his wife. In "I Think You're Fat" he decided to try to go a month without telling any lies, including filtering his thoughts. The book sort of reminds me of when we were children and we would try out experiments in living like, "let's talk like Eliza Doolittle all day" or "let's wear blindfolds for a day". But we always gave up so soon. This author doesn't just try out an idea, he researches it by calling all the experts in the field and reading up on the subjects. And he doesn't give up when the going gets rough.

I've got a new New Year's resolution: I'm going to read all the books by A.J. Jacobs (not because it's a challenge, but because they make me happy.)

[C · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love The Know-It All, but since his first book I've been disappointed with Jacobs. Maybe I'm just tired of the shenanigans, but I also think he's much less likeable in this collection of essays. The only section I really enjoyed was the one where he plays servant to his wife. Still, it's the last chapter of the book and it feels purposefully placed so the reader will somehow forgive all the abuse Jacobs dishes out to his wife throughout the book. Overall, the book feels contrived and formulaic (shtick, resistance to shtick, lessons learned from shtick) in a way that Jacobs' longer books do not.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Good book to read after a long line of murder mystery, thriller, supernatural novels. Kind of like a spoonful of lime sherbet to "cleanse the pallet" before continuing on with the meal. Some chapters were hilarious and others - eh, not so much. Enjoyed A.J.'s continual referring to his wife Julie; it showed how much he loves and respects her. Book came with a lot of out-loud-laughing.

[Kara Babcock · Rating 3 out of 5]

I first heard of A.J. Jacobs when he appeared on The Colbert Report in 2009. He talked, among other things, about the year he spent “living Biblically”. This intrigued me, so I decided to read the book he was pushing at the time. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, because I didn’t know what types of experiments Jacobs had performed. But the book is short, and his writing, if sometimes overbearing, is usually entertaining too. The Guinea Pig Diaries is genuinely interesting and enjoyable.

This is a compilation of articles that appeared, in one form or another, in Esquire. I considered talking about each chapter briefly, but with nine chapters, the detail I would like to devote to each experiment would make this review long and frightfully boring. I loved some chapters and didn’t like others. So I’ll give you the highlights.

The first chapter, “My Life as a Beautiful Woman” was one of my favourites. I spend a lot of time online. When I was younger, I was (probably wisely) relatively anonymous. Gradually I allowed that anonymity to evaporate, and now I use my real name everywhere. This is important to me, because I do not want to create a dichotomy of online/offline personae; I want to be me, whether I am on the Web or in person. But for other people, anonymity is a necessity or a desire. It’s a chance to escape, to gain voice, to explore an alternative identity. The fact remains that despite some legislators’ brutal attempts to curtail the fundamental openness of the Internet, it is very difficult to verify someone’s true identity.

In the case of Michelle’s online dating profile, Michelle was actually the user and participated on the site … but she had Jacobs ghostwriting for her. I loved Jacobs’ account of how this experience changed the way he saw some of these men and, in turn, what he thought about dating and dating sites in general. He expresses his disappointment when dates he has arranged for Michelle don’t go well. He exhorts men to be prudent in their selection of usernames: “topnotchlover” sends a very specific message…. I found myself wishing for more of this chapter, just because the story of this partnership between Jacobs and Michelle to navigate the waters of online dating was so intriguing!

Fortunately, “My Outsourced Life” also proved interesting. The idea of outsourcing one’s entire life sounds like—and usually is—a joke. Jacobs plays it up this way at first, making light of how he hired two different Indian companies to attend to his business and personal tasks, respectively. His assistants, Honey and Asha, did research for him, composed emails, placed delivery orders, etc. Jacobs has his assistants write emails to his boss, write apology notes to his wife, and even conduct a phone call with his parents! It’s all right-out-of-the-textbook hilarious. But as the chapter progresses, a theme emerges:

When I open Honey’s file, I have this reaction: America is screwed. There are charts. There are section headers. There is a well-organized breakdown of her pets, measurements, and favorite foods (e.g., swordfish). If all Bangalorians are like Honey, I pity Americans about to graduate college. They’re up against a hungry, polite, Excel-proficient Indian army.

It is a small and subtle observation of the culture of entitlement and complacency that belies the myth of the American dream that one can pull oneself up by the bootstraps. Other countries are trying that tactic too, and they are reaping the benefits of getting Bootstrap v2.0.

“The Truth About Nakedness” is a slightly underwhelming chapter. It is not, as the title and risqué photo that precedes the chapter might suggest, about Jacobs’ year of living nude. No, instead he discusses how Mary Louise Parker agreed to pose nude for an article she was writing for Esquire about what it feels like to pose nude. Parker said yes, but she wanted Jacobs, as her editor, to pose nude as well. And of course, being the human guinea pig that he is, he acquiesced. I was not that interested in his account of the details of the photoshoot and his feelings at the time. However, the coda to this chapter is a strong voice for critiquing media:

I can never look at a nude picture in the same way. I can still admire a nude photo, but I can no longer separate it from the context in which it was created. I can’t forget, as Mary-Louise put it, the loss of control and possible objectification.

Photography has this amazing power to capture a moment and keep it suspended with infinite potential: what is happening, and what will happen? The right photograph at the right time can be evocative and inspiring. Yet photography can also reduce a human subject to an object, something to be admired or lusted after. For a photograph to be inspiring and empowering, there needs to be that human connection. Jacobs underscores the idea that every photograph has a story, and when we look at a photo, we should wonder about that story.

There are other chapters that are well worth reading: he spends a month doing everything his wife asks; he spends time trying to act completely rationally; he spends a month dressed as George Washington. With each chapter, Jacobs mixes witticisms with genuine reflection, and he always manages to dig down to some kind of profound, albeit not earth-shattering, truth. Despite Jacobs’ engaging tone and the book’s short length, The Guinea Pig Diaries is not a light, fluffy bagatelle. Sometimes that tone bothered me—Jacobs writes with the smugness of someone who is being funny and knows it, and that sardonic self-awareness irked me. His writing has that feel of being smooth, practised, and edited, with the perfect parenthetical inserts and the oh-so-well-timed asides. But this is a minor complaint for what is otherwise a solidly entertaining book.

The subtitle of this book is My Life as an Experiment. I hope that most people’s lives are experiments of one sort or another. I don’t ghostwrite for women’s online dating profiles or live by the personal code of conduct of one of America’s Founding Fathers … but I like to think that even as an introvert, I manage my own little experiments quite well. You don’t have to be audacious and ostentatious in your experimentation if you don’t want to … although, who knows, maybe it means you have a book deal in your future!

[Kat V · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not my favorite book of his but he’s just becoming a comfort author where reading his stuff calms me down if the other stuff I’m reading is too depressing. Really looking forward to his next book that’s coming out next month. 3.6 stars

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A.J. Jacobs has created his own little niche market: conducting experiments in his life and then writing about them. The first of these books, The Know-It-All, chronicled his experience reading every single page of the Encyclopedia Britannica from cover to cover. He followed that up with The Year of Living Biblically, in which he spent a year trying to follow every rule in the Bible as literally as possible. I loved both of these books, so when I heard that Jacobs had a new book last year, I was thrilled. He has a very funny, accessible writing style but manages to convey a lot of information in an entertaining way. He kind of reminds me of Bill Bryson in that way; you manage to learn while laughing.

In this book, Jacobs conducts a series of mini-experiments—ranging from outsourcing everything in his life to a company in India to posing nude to trying to live like George Washington. There are nine experiments in all (one for every chapter). One of my favorite experiments was Project Rationality, which involved trying to overcome all the biases, false assumptions, and warped memories with which our flawed brains make decisions. Just reading this made me realize that my life is a series of false assumptions and half-truths.

Although I found the books entertaining and highly readable, I was a bit disappointed. I suspect the reason is that these are mini experiments instead of immersive, year-long experiments like the ones he wrote about in his previous books. I ended up wanting more and felt like the book was over way too soon. Although it is a good introduction to Jacobs's writing style and isn't a bad read, I enjoyed The Know-It-All and The Year of Living Biblically much more. However, if the worst I can say about the book is that "I wanted more of it. It was too short," then that isn't so bad, is it? Just read it; you'll like it.

Excerpts from the chapter where Jacobs tries to experience fame by attending the Oscars as the actor Noah Taylor: Even more striking, though, is that Noah Taylor and I shared the same haircut and eyeglasses. For reasons I'm still puzzling out, in my mid-twenties I decided to let my hair grow down to my shoulders. This wasn't cool long hair, mind you. It was shapeless and stringy, like Ben Franklin or a meth addict. And the glasses? They were thick. black, and clunky. I suppose I was going for a retro intellectual vibe, something in the Allen Ginsberg area. What I got was Orville Redenbacher.

[Kayce · Rating 5 out of 5]

AJ Jacobs still reigns as my favorite author. This book is full of month long experiments, similar to his experimental Year of Living Biblically, which is still unmatched as my favorite book.

There are a variety of experiments in this book, my favorite one being the month he outsourced his life to a team in India. Brilliant. And funny. Although I've never read something AJ wrote that I didn't laugh out loud. And frequently call someone to say "This is hilarious, let me read you this part"

He is creative with his ideas and his attempts, he is an excellent writer and he makes you chuckle. And the whole time you are learning something. For example, how many of George Washington's 110 Rules of Civility and Decent Behaviour in Company and Conversation can you name? And who knew that the founder of a movement called Radical Honesty lives in Stanley, Virginia? Just over the mountain from where I went to high school. And he has been married 5 times. Guess he is TOO honest, no?

I definitely recommend this book! Light hearted and a quick read!

[Andreea Ursu-Listeveanu · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very interesting book about a man who experiments all kinds of situations that are not really in accordance with his lifestyle. For example, he outsources his daily tasks to a team in Bangalore and he goes til the point when he asks his agents to fight with his wife for him. Then, he tries to be extremely honest and obviously he offends people. Another experiment is the unitasking - as a way of eliminating multi tasking from his life. The last experiment and the one I liked best is the one when he becomes his wife's slave. He does absolutely everything she wants. If you're looking for a funny book, this might make you laugh here and there.

[Tiare · Rating 5 out of 5]

Had me laughing in hysterics by page 8, okay, so I'll give it 5 stars since it's hilarious and witty, but it's really more like a 4.5 for me, it's all just superficial, nothing really DEEP. But a fun read is what I needed and I got it. I would recommend it to anyone. Wait, it's really weird that this ex-library copy had it in the jr non-fiction, there's nothing jr about this book. Some of the stuff he talks about is definitely for adults only.

[Katie Followell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish there was a way I could give this 4 1/2 stars.

I really do love AJ Jacobs. I figured that out after his experiment of living biblically for a year, so I was so excited to read this. What I love most about Jacobs is his sense to improve himself and learn more about who he is. I love that he can admit his failures, and I find that more relatable and inspirational.

This just wasn't "The Year of Living Biblically" though.

I still highly enjoyed it, and there were lots of sections that made me stop and say "YEAH" out loud with a fist in the air. I felt like a few of his experiments weren't really experiments, or related so closely to another section in the book. Like I liked that there was a big difference in between trying to stay focused and the section on rules George Washington lived by. I felt like the section on "being a woman" (or really online dating. that was the most awkward part of the book for me), doing stuff for his wife, and then measuring his brain to see if he's in love were all very similar.

Maybe the different experiments is what didn't make it feel as charismatic to me. I loved the focus to detail in The Year of Living Biblically, and I think this was lacking that.

I still recommend it! Lots of inspiring parts, and I enjoy his thought process for the most part!

[Benjamin Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

AJ Jacobs is a funny fellow. He takes basic ideas and concepts and wonders about what it would be like to live his life that way. Ideas such as, “What would it be like to try to live up to the stature and rules of George Washington?” or “What would it be like to outsource the major pain-in-the-butt tasks of my life the way American corporations do?” or “What would it be like to be a famous actor and walk the red carpet at the Oscars?” or “What would it be like to be a beautiful single female?” But Mr. Jacobs doesn’t stop at just wondering about it. He actually does it.

In this book Mr. Jacobs, an “editor-at-large” for Esquire magazine, actually spends an entire month “living” life according to that particular idea. Some are more straight-forward than others but all lead to humorous consequences. The humor is on the surface, but underneath there is always a subtle commentary on how we behave as human beings. The chapter on “Radical Honesty” whereby Mr. Jacobs spends an entire month being 100% honest (yes, dear, that dress does make you look fat) is funny but also eye opening as to just how many white lies we tell all the time. And the chapter on “Rational Thinking” is fascinating as we watch him struggle to behave and make decisions the way Mr. Spock would…for an entire month.

As other reviewers have noted, Mr. Jacob’s wife, who has to put up with him and is one of the best sports in history, finally gets some satisfaction due to a month of having her every whim satisfied by her husband. She also gets to write a couple of pages herself, correcting the record so to speak.

This book isn’t quite as fun as his previous two books, (The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible and The Know-It-All: One Man's Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World) probably because in each of those books he took a single idea and totally immersed himself in it…for an entire year! But nevertheless, this was a fun and quick read. I’m anxiously waiting for his next book whereby he reportedly tries to achieve bodily perfection and total health…and almost kills himself doing it.

[Alec · Rating 4 out of 5]

A.J. Jacob's compilation of essays published as The Guinea Pig Diaries is a funny, disruptive (ask my wife), and entertaining read. Each essay represents a period of time (usually a month) where the author takes on the challenge of living his life in a different paradigm. That change may be to be radically honest (complete and total honesty, no filter), outsourcing his life, or unitasking rather than multi-tasking. Each essay is about 20 pages long and written in a free-flowing narrative style that gives the reader a peek into the author's inner psyche. It is an endearing and effective style that helps give the reader a sense of participation in the experiment.

I didn't find all of the experiments equally engaging but I did find myself wondering what it would be like to have been the guinea pig in question. I'd be terrible at radical honestly, not because of my propensity to lie, but because I think social courtesy should be observed and everything I think isn't interesting or worth mentioning. Unitasking would be difficult, but probably very beneficial to my productivity. (I admit that I shudder to imagine driving without focusing on anything else- music, book, or passengers.) Washington's code of conduct seems like it would be tedious observed to the nth degree but beneficial in other regards.

In terms of A.J. Jacobs, this is the second book of his which I've read (the other being The Know it All). Both of them have been entertaining and well worth my time. I'm looking forward to reading his Bible experiment, living an entire year according to the commandments of the Bible (not just the Ten Commandments) to see what kinds of shenanigans he gets up to.

[Turi Becker · Rating 4 out of 5]

A.J. Jacobs's two previous books, The Year of Living Biblically One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible and The Know-It-All One Man's Humble Quest To Become The Smartest Person In The World fall into a category I really like - the "guy-takes-a-year-off-to-do-something" (it's usually a male, for some reason. Women must be too smart to do this stuff.) Whether it's making no trash, trying to qualify for the Olympics, or tracing Odysseus's voyage, I find this stuff fascinating. Escapist, perhaps, but fun. The Guinea Pig Diaries My Life as an Experiment is a colleciton of small experiments that Jacobs has done, like practicing Radical Honesty, outsourcing his life, and doing everything his wife says for a month. It's his same style of writing I've enjoyed from his previous books (except the parts he outsourced, or that were written by his wife, which were great, too.) Very recommended if you liked his earlier stuff or this genre.

[Carrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A.J. Jacobs has one of the best jobs in the world. An editor at Esquire magazine, the man writes and edits essays on pop culture and social experiments. This book is a collection of articles (with follow-up notes) written over the course of a year for Esquire. He spends about a month on each, trying out various approaches to life. These approaches include living in accordance with George Washington's code of conduct (don't touch your genitals in front of people), outsourcing his life to India (apparently worth it), doing whatever his wife says (she did not get tired of it, to his disappointment), being radically honest (not easy, but showed him how his relationships could take more honesty than he thought), being a hot chick (answering emails from his nanny's suitors on a dating site), being a celebrity (impersonating the "Shine" guy at an awards ceremony in realizing how differently he was treated), being photographed nude (makes you feel powerless) and unitasking (because multitasking is really just the result of not being able to focus). The author sounds like a really friendly midwestern guy who constantly has a smile on his face. He also comes across as a horndog, since he admits his attraction to just about every woman he mentions in the book. The radical honesty piece was my favorite. When I think of radical honesty, I have exactly the same problems with it that the author brings up. How would my spouse and boss react? What about friends who ask for my opinion of their sucky art?

[Kelly Hager · Rating 4 out of 5]

I cannot tell you just how much I love him. He's so incredibly funny and this was just as good as his other two (The Know-It-All, about reading the entire encyclopedia for fun, and The Year of Living Biblically, where he spent a year following all Biblical commands).

In this one, he does several little social experiments--he outsources his life to India, for example. (His "assistants" order Christmas presents, talk to his wife and relatives for him and once read a story to his son.)

My favorite is the month where he followed George Washington's example. If you didn't know this (and I didn't), he followed a 110-rule code of conduct. (Basically it can be boiled down this way: manners, yay!) My favorite rule is the last one. "Labor to keep alive in your breast that little spark of celestial fire called conscience." Good rule for everyone, right?

These books don't sound that great when you discuss what they're about, but they're just incredibly smart and funny. I envy people who get to read them for the first time. It's quite the adventure.

In the last chapter, for instance, his experiment is to spend a month doing whatever his wife says. He volunteers to do all the little chores around the house that she typically does. Her response?

"`I can't let you do that,' she said. Our apartment would look like Grey Gardens within two weeks."

How can you not love someone who references Grey Gardens?! Love. :)

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Life must surely never be boring in the Jacobs household. The author chronicles various month-long experiments he has undertaken to gain greater understanding of a given topic or philosophy of life. Since he's the guy who spent a year reading the Encyclopedia Britannica and another year living biblically in as literal a sense as he could manage this installment should be no surprise.

His style is as informative, thoughtful, and humorous as in his previous works. Since these experiments are so much shorter though there is a corresponding lack of depth to the observations. Don't read that as a negative criticism. I think it's an inevitable result of a shorter experiment in immersing himself. That he immerses himself so fully in anything is still rather remarkable. That his wife tolerates all of this is even more noteworthy.

Jacobs chooses a wide range of experiments form outsourcing his life (communication with his family and even story reading to his children), to living by George Washington's rules for conduct (contained in an appendix), to finally allowing his wife to have complete and unfettered control over his decisions and actions for a month. As such she also contributes the final essay, which is a wonderful window into her world and thoughts on her husband's unique way of self-education.

[Susy Flory · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love AJ Jacobs, and enjoyed this book, but at times it rehashed stories from The Know-It-All. Probably my favorite story is the time he was forced to pose naked for Esquire so he could understand what women go through when they pose for cheesecake pictures. The photographer, named Nigel, kept telling him to "Sook in yer goot!"

In Jacobs's own words: "My goot? Nigel taps his stomach.

Ah, he's talking about my problematic belly. I sook in some air.

Nigel begins snapping photos. The Frisbee-sized lights flash, making a soft pop, like a snare drum in smooth jazz. I sit. I try to think dignified thoughts. Think of the Romans, the Greeks. They posed nude and still started civilization as we know it.

I feel vulnerable, yes. There I am, exposed for all to see. But paradoxically, I feel disappointed that no one seems to be looking at me. Nigel has a cadre of cute, young female assistants. They are busy making cell-phone calls, chatting about what they heard on NPR that morning, unpacking lenses. My nude form holds about as much allure to them as a wicker chair."

Even though this wasn't my favorite AJ Jacobs's book, I love his eccentricities (various OCD habits) and his authenticity, not to mention his long-suffering wife, Julie.

[Thomas Edmund · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this out of order to 'A year of Living Heathily' and noticed something strange. In my review of that book I felt a strange connection with Jacobs and his eccentric but thoughtful take on life. My lovely wife attributed this to skillful writing, which I pooed pooed assuming I had found an author who truly 'got' me.

I think after reading Guinea Pig my wife was right.

Less polished this book perhaps shows more of Jacobs personality (we're not that similar it seems) which was oddly disappointing.

Although perhaps we do have rambling non-fiction narratives in common... Now to actually review.

Life as a Human Experiment is a nice quick read, humorous in approach and more fun than serious. Radical honestly was a stand out chapter that provided a lot of food for thought, some other experiments I felt were pursued with too much focus on forced comedy when its Jacobs' balance between jokes and insights that makes his work.

Ended up calling it at four stars (not because I felt oddly distant from Jacobs in this piece) but because after a while the structure and narrative got a little repetitive and I began to feel like I was just listening to Jacobs' thoughts on a variety of topics rather than a well-constructed experiment (the number of I statements where a giveaway)

[Alicia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think I liked this book even more than "Living Biblically" because it was lots of little experiments instead of one long year of craziness. I think my favorite is the radical honesty. I think I practice this unintentionally sometimes and I totally believe in honesty when asked a question. I don't think I'll go as far as this guy does where he says that you should have no FILTER between what you think and what you say.

As Eric D. Snider says, just because something happens, doesn't mean you have to talk about it. However, people need to be honest. You aren't doing ANYONE a favor by lying to them.

I really liked this book. Very quick read, very funny. I don't think I would have the patience to NOT multitask (as I type this review I am chatting online with someone and listening to something on my Tivo. So that's 3 things at once) but I'm intrigued by the idea that multitasking stunts your brain because it means that you aren't following an action through to the end. You end up quitting it early due to boredom. We need to follow a thought or an action through to the end. Very interesting.

Well, I should go now and do something else. I'm bored writing this review. :)

[Kristel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't say this to say that this is a bad book, because it's not, but this is my least favourite of AJ Jacobs' books. A lot of the experiments in this book are interesting, but they don't collectively or individually hold a candle to any of his other books. Some people are good at essays, some people are better at long form: I think Jacobs might be the latter. (That said, I'm not sure most of the ideas in here would make for full-length books, even if he had taken on the experiments for longer times.)

I think I may be over-loading on light, conversational non-fiction right now, though. No way could this be better than Mary Roach's Packing for Mars or Jacobs' Drop Dead Healthy: One Man's Humble Quest for Bodily Perfection or even the very different (but still non-fictional) Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea by Guy Delisle. (All January finishes of mine.)

I always enjoy Jacobs' writing, and I expect I'll enjoy whatever his next book turns out to be, but I'll still cross my fingers that it's not another collection of essays.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm glad I became familiar with Mr. Jacob's work through mental floss, and not through Esquire, if these essays are any indication. In Mental Floss, he had brief moments, enough for me to catch glimpses of his writing style (charmingly self-effacing, clever with words and switches in writing style), enough to get me interested in reading his previous two books, in which he had enough space to explore his topics. These essays, collected from previous material with added codas that give a much needed look at the reaction to the piece, are just the wrong length for me to truly enjoy the writing.

Mr. Jacobs is at his best when he is insightful, when he looks at actual studies and data to influence what he does such as in the rationality experiment or the "do as your wife says" experiment. In both of those, he is lighthearted and humorous, but manages to make a good point about the way we live our lives.

[Kathleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really like A. J. Jacobs's style of immersing himself in a project to write about it completely, so a book where he tackles a number of these experiments is wonderful. Exploring ideas from Radical Honesty, to overseas outsourcing, to Washingtonian civility, Jacobs gives his unique perspective to aspects of modern, and not-so-modern, life. Clearly, the best chapter in the book is when he experiments with being an ideal husband. His wife deserved this in ways that people who have not read The Year of Living Biblically can never truly understand. Not that he doesn't seem great, but she puts up with a whole lot during these experiments, so it was nice to see her get a little comeuppance.