A.J. Jacobs wears many hats (and the occasional yarmulke). He's an editor at large for Esquire magazine, a father of three, a nude model and an immersion journalist...
"What's that?" you ask.
Well, it's like a method actor with a pencil. You could say that A.J. Jacobs is the Sean Penn of journalists—minus the crazy. Just read my review of his latest book, The Year of Living Biblically, and you'll see what I mean.
Now that Jacobs's Biblical year is over and his book is out, he finds himself in the midst of a media whirlwind, hanging out with Matt Lauer on The Today Show, preparing for a book tour and answering interview questions for top-notch blogs like Ashcan Rantings. Oh, fudge, I boasted.
In a strange way, I do. It got to be wildly uncomfortable, and my wife stopped kissing me for the last two months. But at the same time, I felt like it was almost a member of the family by the end.
How did living Biblically compare with reading the entire Encyclopedia Britannica?
Living biblically was actually much, much harder. The Britannica wasn’t a walk in the park—it’s 33,000 pages, and some of those pages are about algebraic topology—but the Bible project was a more extreme makeover. It affected everything in my life—the way I talked, ate, thought, dressed and touched my wife.
Since religion can be a touchy subject, I'm curious to know if you've received any negative feedback regarding your book.
There has been some. A few people say they are praying for me—which I actually don’t consider necessarily negative. But overall, I’ve been surprised by how positively it’s been received in religious circles. I think it may have to do with the fact that I went in not to mock religion, but to understand it. I know it’s not biblical to boast, but I’m proud to say that a piece about my journey was put on the cover of an evangelical magazine called Relevant (it’s sort of the Rolling Stone of Christian media).
Since your Uncle Gil was part of the inspiration behind this project and since he's an "ultra-Orthodox Jew," I was wondering if he has read the book, and, if so, what did he think?
I’m not sure. I’m curious as well! But I haven’t called him. I think my family was already pushed to the limit when I met him (he’s the black sheep of the family). If I kept in touch then I would be in big trouble.
From a Biblical standpoint, when you extended not lying into the extremes of Radical Honesty, did the good of total honesty outweigh the bad of hurting people's feelings?
It was definitely a balance. I’m very leery of hurting others feelings. Maybe too leery. Which is why I was/am addicted to white lies. But I learned through Radical Honesty that our relationships, contrary to Jack Nicholson, can handle the truth more often than I thought. Just not always.
On a lighter note, do you still use a Nerf bat as your child-punishing rod?
No, that was a complete disaster. Usually I tried to follow the spirit of the Bible, but sometimes I couldn’t. Sometimes I had to resort to the letter of the law. And with the advice in the Proverbs about punishing with a rod, I couldn’t go through with an actual rod. So I used a Nerf rod. My son loved it. Thought it was hilarious. So it was counterproductive.
Did you ever come to a determination in regards to exaggeration—is it a sin? Since humorous writing requires a bit of "I once caught a fish this big," this one had to gnaw on you a bit.
It’s a tough one. Though one thing about the Bible is, often you don’t have to exaggerate. Like with ages—if you tried to exaggerate the age of Methusela (969 years) it just wouldn’t make any sense.
My wife, Leah, wants to know how your wife, Julie, puts up with your "shenanigans."
As has been said, she has the patience of Job. (Though I learned from reading the Bible closely, Job wasn’t really all that patient).
Random question: New York Magazine or The New Yorker?
I get them both! How’s that? I think the Culture Matrix is brilliant and am jealous that I didn’t think of something like it.
Since habits take about a month to form, what habits stuck with you from your year-long project? Did cognitive dissonance take hold?
Lots of habits did stay with me. Like thanking. I became an extreme thanker, and continue to try to be very very thankful. I try to focus on the 100 little things that go right every day instead of the three or four that go wrong.
Of the rules you followed, which one did you find the most bizarre and which was the most meaningful?
One of the interesting things about the project was, even the bizarre rules took on meanings of their own after awhile. Like for instance, the rule to avoid wearing clothes of mixed fibers. I was fascinated. I wanted to know where it came from, what it meant in Bible times and could it possibly have any relevance to our lives now. Is there anything to be said for following a tradition that’s been around a long time, even if that tradition appears crazy on the surface? Aren’t most traditions irrational in a way? What about birthday candles? As one commenter pointed out, to a Martian, birthday candle wishes and mixed fiber avoidance might be about the same level of craziness. That said, I have stopped avoiding clothes of mixed fibers. But I have continued to keep, for instance, the Sabbath. I love it. I love the idea of a mandated day to rest and pause and reflect and spend with the family.
Do you have any advice for aspiring writers, especially those interested in "immersion journalism?"
I’d say that you can’t be afraid of humiliating yourself in the search for the greater truth.
Can you read anything without editing it in your head? These questions, for instance.
When I’m reading, I’m often looking for new ideas, so the editing function is turned off and the story-searching function is switched on. Why? Did you make any big mistakes in these questions?
Do you still say "fudge" instead of the alternative?
About half the time I do. I love it. It sounds so much like something out of the Andy Griffith Show that it makes me chuckle, which automatically makes me less angry. So it’s quite useful.
What's next and does it really involve a Wikipedia-like "258 coauthors" like you mentioned in the book?
My wife says I owe her big time. And that my next project should be a year of giving her foot massages. Maybe I can get 258 other people to chip in.
"What's that?" you ask.
Well, it's like a method actor with a pencil. You could say that A.J. Jacobs is the Sean Penn of journalists—minus the crazy. Just read my review of his latest book, The Year of Living Biblically, and you'll see what I mean.
Now that Jacobs's Biblical year is over and his book is out, he finds himself in the midst of a media whirlwind, hanging out with Matt Lauer on The Today Show, preparing for a book tour and answering interview questions for top-notch blogs like Ashcan Rantings. Oh, fudge, I boasted.
Photograph by Michael Cogliantry
First off, do you miss the beard?In a strange way, I do. It got to be wildly uncomfortable, and my wife stopped kissing me for the last two months. But at the same time, I felt like it was almost a member of the family by the end.
How did living Biblically compare with reading the entire Encyclopedia Britannica?
Living biblically was actually much, much harder. The Britannica wasn’t a walk in the park—it’s 33,000 pages, and some of those pages are about algebraic topology—but the Bible project was a more extreme makeover. It affected everything in my life—the way I talked, ate, thought, dressed and touched my wife.
Since religion can be a touchy subject, I'm curious to know if you've received any negative feedback regarding your book.
There has been some. A few people say they are praying for me—which I actually don’t consider necessarily negative. But overall, I’ve been surprised by how positively it’s been received in religious circles. I think it may have to do with the fact that I went in not to mock religion, but to understand it. I know it’s not biblical to boast, but I’m proud to say that a piece about my journey was put on the cover of an evangelical magazine called Relevant (it’s sort of the Rolling Stone of Christian media).
Since your Uncle Gil was part of the inspiration behind this project and since he's an "ultra-Orthodox Jew," I was wondering if he has read the book, and, if so, what did he think?
I’m not sure. I’m curious as well! But I haven’t called him. I think my family was already pushed to the limit when I met him (he’s the black sheep of the family). If I kept in touch then I would be in big trouble.
From a Biblical standpoint, when you extended not lying into the extremes of Radical Honesty, did the good of total honesty outweigh the bad of hurting people's feelings?
It was definitely a balance. I’m very leery of hurting others feelings. Maybe too leery. Which is why I was/am addicted to white lies. But I learned through Radical Honesty that our relationships, contrary to Jack Nicholson, can handle the truth more often than I thought. Just not always.
On a lighter note, do you still use a Nerf bat as your child-punishing rod?
No, that was a complete disaster. Usually I tried to follow the spirit of the Bible, but sometimes I couldn’t. Sometimes I had to resort to the letter of the law. And with the advice in the Proverbs about punishing with a rod, I couldn’t go through with an actual rod. So I used a Nerf rod. My son loved it. Thought it was hilarious. So it was counterproductive.
Did you ever come to a determination in regards to exaggeration—is it a sin? Since humorous writing requires a bit of "I once caught a fish this big," this one had to gnaw on you a bit.
It’s a tough one. Though one thing about the Bible is, often you don’t have to exaggerate. Like with ages—if you tried to exaggerate the age of Methusela (969 years) it just wouldn’t make any sense.
My wife, Leah, wants to know how your wife, Julie, puts up with your "shenanigans."
As has been said, she has the patience of Job. (Though I learned from reading the Bible closely, Job wasn’t really all that patient).
Random question: New York Magazine or The New Yorker?
I get them both! How’s that? I think the Culture Matrix is brilliant and am jealous that I didn’t think of something like it.
Since habits take about a month to form, what habits stuck with you from your year-long project? Did cognitive dissonance take hold?
Lots of habits did stay with me. Like thanking. I became an extreme thanker, and continue to try to be very very thankful. I try to focus on the 100 little things that go right every day instead of the three or four that go wrong.
Of the rules you followed, which one did you find the most bizarre and which was the most meaningful?
One of the interesting things about the project was, even the bizarre rules took on meanings of their own after awhile. Like for instance, the rule to avoid wearing clothes of mixed fibers. I was fascinated. I wanted to know where it came from, what it meant in Bible times and could it possibly have any relevance to our lives now. Is there anything to be said for following a tradition that’s been around a long time, even if that tradition appears crazy on the surface? Aren’t most traditions irrational in a way? What about birthday candles? As one commenter pointed out, to a Martian, birthday candle wishes and mixed fiber avoidance might be about the same level of craziness. That said, I have stopped avoiding clothes of mixed fibers. But I have continued to keep, for instance, the Sabbath. I love it. I love the idea of a mandated day to rest and pause and reflect and spend with the family.
Do you have any advice for aspiring writers, especially those interested in "immersion journalism?"
I’d say that you can’t be afraid of humiliating yourself in the search for the greater truth.
Can you read anything without editing it in your head? These questions, for instance.
When I’m reading, I’m often looking for new ideas, so the editing function is turned off and the story-searching function is switched on. Why? Did you make any big mistakes in these questions?
Do you still say "fudge" instead of the alternative?
About half the time I do. I love it. It sounds so much like something out of the Andy Griffith Show that it makes me chuckle, which automatically makes me less angry. So it’s quite useful.
What's next and does it really involve a Wikipedia-like "258 coauthors" like you mentioned in the book?
My wife says I owe her big time. And that my next project should be a year of giving her foot massages. Maybe I can get 258 other people to chip in.
