Rating: 
Summary: An Introduction to life and works of Kant
Review: Do not expect to learn Kant's philosohy from a fifty page book. As the author will tell you, Kant's first work was over 800 pages long.What you can expect from this book is a short biographical look at the works and life of Kant. I like these little 90 minute books. I have been using them as the openers to expanded study. For example before diving into Kant's writing I decided to get an overview. The "In 90 minutes" series has helped me to begin my studies of each philosoher, and in many ways has given me some idea of what to expect. I like these books, but remember, it is an opener to the study of each philosopher, You may not be able to use them as cheat sheets for your homework.
Rating: 
Summary: Give me a break!
Review: Give me a break! You will not understand Kant by merely reading this book. A better starting point would be the book Kant by Roger Scruton (another short book, but much better than this one), then read Kant's Prolegomena for his epistemology and Foundations of a Metaphysics of Morals for his ethics. After that, sink your teeth into the Critiques (I am, as of yet, not that knowledgable concerning Kant's aesthetics, so I can't make a reccomendation in that area).
Rating:
Summary: Give me a break!
Review: I didn't buy this book thinking that I'd get a complete summary of all of the most important works of one of the greatest thinkers of all time. I got just what I expected; a summary of some of the master's greatest works, and a lot of interesting information on his life. Expect to be entertained by this book. Kant was certainly an interesting fellow. A hypochondriac? Who'd have guessed? Use this book as a primer. Then go on to some of the "meatier" Kantian works and the biographies. In brief, at least in 90 minutes or less, ENJOY!
Rating:
Summary: Short (of course), but enjoyable
Review: I didn't buy this book thinking that I'd get a complete summary of all of the most important works of one of the greatest thinkers of all time. I got just what I expected; a summary of some of the master's greatest works, and a lot of interesting information on his life. Expect to be entertained by this book. Kant was certainly an interesting fellow. A hypochondriac? Who'd have guessed? Use this book as a primer. Then go on to some of the "meatier" Kantian works and the biographies. In brief, at least in 90 minutes or less, ENJOY!
Rating: 
Summary: Biography not Philosophy
Review: I should have been smarter that one can not understand Kant in 90 minutes but even than the name of the book is very misleading. It is a short biography than Philosophy. There are better ways to spend money. Read this book as biography but you do not get bang for your buck. There are much better biography books.
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Summary: Learn Kant in 90 Minutes? Not With This Book
Review: Immanuel Kant has a well deserved reputation as one of the most difficult philosophers to read and to study. His writing style is, to be generous, rather convoluted. One could only imagine Kant's laundry lists: they must be pages and pages in length. So it comes as no surprise that a Get-Kant-Quick book would be desired by many intelligent readers who do not have the time to translate the English translation of Kant's writings into English. And there are such books out there that will enable one to do just that. Unfortunately, this isn't one of them. Don't be taken in by the inexpensive price - all you really get for your shekels is a cursory summary of Kant's life and thought, with more emphasis on the biography than the thought. A dialogue on Kant's metaphysics follows. Add to that short passages from Kant's writings, and timeline chronologies of Kant's life and the history of philosophy. All this for about $6.00. For a few dollars more, you can buy Karl Jaspers's excellent short book on Kant taken from his "Great Philosophers" books. The difference between Paul Strathern and Karl Jaspers is that between a backyard barbeque cook and the Iron Chef. To illustrate my point in this regard, consider Strathern's discussion of Kant's Categorical Imperative. While he takes the first part into account, "Act as if what you do should be a universal law," he forgets the second part, "Treat others as ends and not as means." Strathern gives us an example of Kant being asked by the Nazis as to the whereabout of a Jewish friend. Strathern noted that, according to Kant's own dictum, to tell a lie even to a murderer is wrong. But he then notes that perhaps "his highly active mind would quickly discovered a duty which forbade him to hand over his friend. If Strathern had taken the time to digest the complete Categorical Imperative, he would have the answer. (A Kantian would replay that, although he knows where his friend is, he could not turn the friend over, for the person is an end and not a means to an end.) Jaspers knew this, and so does Scruton: the difference between spending you money and getting your money's worth.
Rating: 
Summary: A marvelous, short summary of Kant' life work
Review: It is impossible to summarize Kant's work in 90 minutes, yet Strathern has managed to do it. It is painful to read Kant in the original or in English translation. Strathern has saved us from this pain by neatly summarizing Kant's work in a format that can be digested easily and quickly. The biographical information he gives brings Kant, the man, to life. He is able to put the main points of Kant's thought into language that a nonprofessional can understand. Thus, he has done us a great service.
Rating: 
Summary: Nice Little Biography + A Tiny Bit of Kantian Philosophy
Review: Paul Strathern's "____ in 90 Minutes" are all quite similar structurally, so for all those who have read my reviews of them and notice the similarities, please forgive me. In this installment on Kant, Strathern focuses, as he usually does, primarily on biographical information. Is this a fault of the series? Many readers seem to think so. I do not, for I don't see major exegesis as the primary purpose of this series. If one looks on the back cover one discovers that Strathern offers "a concise, expert account of Kant's life and ideas, and explains their influence on man's struggle to understand the existence in the world." This is essentially all Strathern promises and, in my view, he delivers adequately. Strathern focuses more on the "big-picture" issues, such as who came before Kant (namely David Hume), what the main philosophical trends were during Kant's lifetime, what environmental factors influenced him (geographical (or lack thereof), familial, religious, etc.), Kant's impact on philosophy, and why, in the end, Kant is considered by many to be the greatest philosopher of all time. Very few pages are dedicated to the actual words Kant wrote, but there is much worth reading in this little book. I've personally had only one undergraduate class in the past that touched on Kant (who is easily the most difficult thinker to understand via his own pen), so I was hoping to glean perhaps a little more actual philosophy when I decided to read this quick book. Although this didn't really happen, I was very happy to learn all kinds of things about Kant's life and works that I didn't already know, and Strathern offers a tidy little list of recommended readings for those who crave more Kant. If you're looking for heavy-hitting Kantian philosophy, you shouldn't be looking for such between the covers of a book that is intended to take 90 minutes to read. For a light-hearted, enjoyable overview, look no further.
Rating:
Summary: Nice Little Biography + A Tiny Bit of Kantian Philosophy
Review: Paul Strathern's "____ in 90 Minutes" are all quite similar structurally, so for all those who have read my reviews of them and notice the similarities, please forgive me. In this installment on Kant, Strathern focuses, as he usually does, primarily on biographical information. Is this a fault of the series? Many readers seem to think so. I do not, for I don't see major exegesis as the primary purpose of this series. If one looks on the back cover one discovers that Strathern offers "a concise, expert account of Kant's life and ideas, and explains their influence on man's struggle to understand the existence in the world." This is essentially all Strathern promises and, in my view, he delivers adequately. Strathern focuses more on the "big-picture" issues, such as who came before Kant (namely David Hume), what the main philosophical trends were during Kant's lifetime, what environmental factors influenced him (geographical (or lack thereof), familial, religious, etc.), Kant's impact on philosophy, and why, in the end, Kant is considered by many to be the greatest philosopher of all time. Very few pages are dedicated to the actual words Kant wrote, but there is much worth reading in this little book. I've personally had only one undergraduate class in the past that touched on Kant (who is easily the most difficult thinker to understand via his own pen), so I was hoping to glean perhaps a little more actual philosophy when I decided to read this quick book. Although this didn't really happen, I was very happy to learn all kinds of things about Kant's life and works that I didn't already know, and Strathern offers a tidy little list of recommended readings for those who crave more Kant. If you're looking for heavy-hitting Kantian philosophy, you shouldn't be looking for such between the covers of a book that is intended to take 90 minutes to read. For a light-hearted, enjoyable overview, look no further.
Rating:
Summary: Easily better than a 90 minute movie !
Review: So, what are you doing for the next 90 minutes !? Well, if you were Kant and it was 3pm you would be out for a walk. But, you are not Kant! So, why not read this crisp, piety-clearing, psych-insightful, entertaining portrait? Rarely will you find such an academically freeing and stimulating 90 minutes. (Especially assuming that you may have been numbed by Kant in the past.) And, cheaper than most of the multiplexes!
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