Walden was like taking a stroll through a wooded area through each season. The introspect of the man living at Walden pond and what he experienced during his time there was interesting. It was very relaxing to read, though not exactly the best writing. It’s more poetry than informative, and felt like Thoreau was rambling about unrelated subjects a lot

Reading this book felt a lot like going to the gym. It was tough while I was doing it, but I knew I would feel better having done it. 
I just got back from my Book Club and we had some really great discussions because of this book. Some of the shorter sections stuck with me such as Reading and Solitude. Thoreau had a lot of intense views and I think we all came away feeling like he had the right idea, but that very few of us wanted to take things as far as he did. 
I had the same perspective after finishing this book as I do after reading most books designed for self reflection and improvement, and that is that moderation is usually the best road. But moderation only occurs with frequent self reflection, so I guess we need to keep reading these kinds of books to keep us in check!

There's a lot I disagree with and/or find challenging, but it does provide opportunities for reflection. Just one brief, quick example:

........................................ I MEAN........................... 

1) what kind of shelter? of what quality? it's no problem if we're fine with no appliances, electricity, etc...  2) that would be nice... IF LAND AND TOOLS WERE FREE AND PRICES HAD STAYED THE SAME TT^TT

Some of his points are way too privileged and idealistic (at times unrealistic), but I can understand bits of where he's coming from. A lot of his opinions/ideas would be great to bring to fruition (I too would LOVE to obtain those things necessary to life in order to adventure on life itself) but in my opinion, it's more of a culture/societal problem than one we can fix individually by just "building your own house on a big swath of land surrounded by nature and living by enjoying the works of your hands" :')

To be fair and balance out the review a bit more, here are two quotes I like:

Beautiful. Classic. Inspiring. Sometimes boring. 

"At present, I am a sojourner in civilized life again."

When I read that at the very beginning, I felt at home in this book. I have swam at Walden Pond and it is pure beauty and so magical and made it so much easier to connect with this dated book. 

I loved parts of it, but it is long and sometimes it just felt like long ramblings of an oddball who loved the unconventional life even more than I do. 

Favorite lines or ideas:

Chapter 1:
- "I should not talk so much about myself if there were anybody else who I knew as well." 

- A busy person cannot remember his own ignorance which is required for growth.

- "The cost of a thing is the amount, of what I will call, life which is required to be exchanged for it immediately or in the long run

Chapter 2:
- "I do not wish to be any more busy with my hands than is necessary."

Chapter 3:
- "I do not make any very broad distinction between the illiterateness of my townsmen who cannot read at all and the illiterateness of him who has learned to read only what is for children and feeble intellects. 

Chapter 6:
- This is the quote that I read on a sign in Henry David Thoreau's little house at Walden Pond that spurred me to put this on my 'to-read' list: "I had three chairs in my house: one for solitude, two for friendship, three for society."

Chapter 9:
- Preferring to spend the most valued portion of the day outdoors, "for I was rich, if not in money, in sunny hours and summer days, and spent them lavishly"

Conclusion:
-Do not trouble yourself much to get new things, whether clothes or friends. Turn thee old. Return to them. Things do not change. We change. Sell your clothes and keep your thoughts. 

a masterpiece. the naked truth of capitalist society.