Synopsis: Marie Kondo is a Japanese Cleaning Consultant that helps people get organized and live in clean homes that they won’t have to constantly tidy. Her method is called the KonMari Method which is a combination of her first and last name. The biggest difference between her method and other cleaning and organizational methods is how she doesn’t want to you to clean room by room but by category. She also demands that you clean everything at once. For example, when you are organizing the clothing category, you must obtain all your clothing in the entire house and put it in the middle of the floor or on top of your bed. Then you must sort the clothing and only keep clothing that brings you joy. Her desire is that you get a realistic perspective of how much you own as a whole and this will motivate you to stay tidy in the end. This book has sold over 9 million copies so I would conclude that many people love her methods.
My Thoughts: This was a delightful and enjoyable book. Her use of storytelling was entertaining and fast paced which made it a quick read. There were moments in the book where I was laughing aloud because the description of what her clients were struggling with was a reflection of my own challenges of tidying up. Her reaction to these organizational problems made me laugh. I could just imagine her coming to my own home and saying the exact same things.
The art of organization is my happy place, so finding a book to read on organization is even better. Although, I do not agree with all her methods or beliefs, I was inspired by her art of discarding and her folding methods have changed the way I do laundry forever.
As a homeschool mom of 5 kiddos still living in the house, her method of doing everything all at once is a bit unrealistic. In my reality, I have to go room by room because my kids and family life will not allow anything different. The art of discarding was inspirational and brought an awareness of clutter that I happen to just store and keep for no reason. For example, I have this one cupboard full of cookbooks that I have kept since I was first married. I only use about 5 or 6 of them. Why in the world am I storing the rest? Just recently we had to change the way we eat due to health issues and I bought some beautiful cookbooks for inspiration. Sadly, they do not fit in the stuffed cupboard of cookbooks that I don’t use. I definitely need to incorporate the KonMari method and discard them.
This is also an engaging audible to listen to while you tidy your house. I was able to accomplish quite a bit of cleaning due to wanting to finish the book.
Recommended For: People that love organization or want to be inspired in new ways to organize. You should also listen to the audible version if you want an entertaining books to inspire you while you clean.
Have you read this book?
What are your thoughts about the book if you have read it?
Living the Adventure 