A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life
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A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

Donald Miller (Author, Narrator), Harper Horizon (Publisher)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 2,984 ratings
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Full of beautiful, heart-wrenching, and hilarious stories, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years details one man's opportunity to edit his life as if her were a character in a movie. Years after writing his best-selling memoir, Donald Miller went into a funk and spent months sleeping in and avoiding his publisher. One story had ended, and Don was unsure how to start another. But he gets rescued by two movie producers who want to make a movie based on his memoir. When they start fictionalizing Don's life for film - changing a meandering memoir into a structured narrative - the real-life Don starts a journey to edit his actual life into a better story.

A Million Miles in a Thousand Years details that journey and challenges listeners to reconsider what they strive for in life. It shows how to get a second chance at life the first time around.

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  1. Listening Length
    5 hours and 11 minutes
  2. Author
    Donald Miller
  3. Narrator
    Donald Miller
  4. Audible release date
    October 26, 2009
  5. Language
    English
  6. Publisher
    Harper Horizon
  7. ASIN
    B002UF5KOE
  8. Version
    Unabridged
  9. Program Type
    Audiobook
  10. See all details
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Product details

Listening Length 5 hours and 11 minutes
Author Donald Miller
Narrator Donald Miller
Audible.com Release Date October 26, 2009
Publisher Harper Horizon
Program Type Audiobook
Version Unabridged
Language English
ASIN B002UF5KOE
Best Sellers Rank #12,207 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals)
#21 in Biographies of Religious Figures
#141 in Religious Leader Biographies
#239 in Christian Spiritual Growth (Audible Books & Originals)

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
2,984 global ratings
Lessons for a Lifetime and a Thousand Years
5 Stars
Lessons for a Lifetime and a Thousand Years
On my all-time favorite books list. I've read this book multiple times and I've purchased it 4 times to give as gifts. The lessons contained within are invaluable, and the story is perfectly representative of the challenges many people face today.I have hard cover and paperback version, with 2 different tagline, "What I learned while editing my life" and "How I learned to live a better life story". Story is the same in both.
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Top reviews from the United States

Albion
5.0 out of 5 stars Funny, endearing and insightful.
Reviewed in the United States on December 11, 2021
Verified Purchase
Funny, endearing and insightful. The book narrates a (likely fictional) biography of the author as he is approached by two film-makers who want to make a film out of his life, based on a book he previously wrote. As he engages with them, he realizes his life has become boring and not worthy of storytelling. While the film-makers diverge by creating a fictional version of the author in order to make the movie, the protagonist examines his life and takes action, taking clues from what makes a good story, in order to make a good life.

Some interesting tidbits:
* Whether we choose them or not, we are always traversing a story. It could be the story of us achieving something professionally, us supporting a friend, us trying to find a life partner, us diving into a new hobby, etc. Not all stories are good. We can change them both for us and for others (#leadership).

* We can only bring a story to life if we act it out. It doesn't work to just imagine or plan -- stories have to be lived and through acting them out, we become the protagonist in question. A similar point is made on the Atomic Habits book: what we do (and not what we think, plan, dream about, etc) is what makes who we are.

* When we think about personal growth, it's interesting to consider that the best stories come not from acquiring new skills or knowledge, but from character development. We may grow in a variety of ways in our lives, but our character flaws remain largely our biggest and scariest foe.

* Knowing we are in a story should also help us contextualize our struggles -- no good story is without its twists and turns, and the occasional setbacks. Having the presence of mind to step back and appreciate that struggle as the forge of change, can help us adopt a more optimistic attitude towards it.

* All stories of transformation involve a certain amount of pain. If we only choose to embark in stories that suppose no pain for us, we will not grow. Also, choosing by fear is a sure way to get a boring life.

* We don't need to entirely committed to something to start. We only need a lapse of bravery to commit to a story.

As a result of this last part - I signed up for my first 10k race in a couple of months. Wish me luck!

Update: I did the race and finished it :)
15 people found this helpful
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Afton Phillips
5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring
Reviewed in the United States on October 28, 2009
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What I've always admired about Donald Miller's previous work was the way he could talk about God without actually talking about God. He doesn't blatantly write that he is writing from a Christian standpoint, yet there is no way you can read through any of his books and not walk away with a sense of a higher being and the hope He brings. Miller's writing is organic and genuine, and I was afraid he couldn't keep up with it after he became so popular. However, in "A million miles in a thousand years", he once again blows me away with his simple, honest approach to life, that inspires readers to really live.
It's undeniable that Miller believes in a higher power. It might not be obvious at first, but I think that's what makes this book great for believers and nonbelievers alike. Both can read this book and get something incredibly important out of it. It's like looking at your life through a window and seeing how God orchestrates each life like a movie, with a climax and a turning point and a conclusion. Reading this book has made me fall in love with God as a person, not as a religion. He truly captures the essence of God and leaves you thinking about the God that is here and now instead of some force outside the universe. He is a God we interact with on a daily basis, who has real feelings and emotions and longs for our lives to be rich.
Because He writes so honestly, Miller knows how to capture the reader's heart, not just their mind. His honesty brings us to look at our lives honestly. It's almost a little unsettling to read his story and the way he's made his life worth something because it provokes each person to ask the most important question of what each of us are doing with our lives. His story in this books begins with moviemakers ready to make a story of Don's life from his novel "Blue Like Jazz", however the more they talk and they more they edit Don's life to make it movie worthy, the more Don contemplates what he wants his life's story to be. The legacy his life will lead and in the end, wondering if his life will be the kind of story that is worth watching. The way he can be so real with the reader almost forces the reader to be more real with themselves and evaluate the meaning in their lives. It's something each of us struggle with- the question of what we're doing with our lives that makes them worth something.
As we struggle with Don through this crisis of life's meaning, we realize what it means to truly live and he inspires us to do so. I felt like I worked through this together with him and end inspired to do something. Don uses the phrase "I want to live a better story", which left me feeling like there is so much more I want to do and accomplish, and I finally feel like I can. Don sees life very clearly, and he helps the reader to step back from their own lives to see their clearly too. Usually when you do this, you realize how uninspired your life can seen and it makes you want to change. He makes you want to truly life for a bigger purpose than yourself, and when you do so you realize that living for someone other than yourself is what gives you life meaning. Don writes about his foundation called "the mentoring project" and describes that what really got him moving in life again was to work to make someone else's life better. Now through this initiative, fatherless kids around the world are being mentored and inspired, and their lives will be change; their stories will be changed.
"A million miles in a thousand years" is a must-read for anyone looking for meaning in life, and honestly, who isn't? He beautifully engrains the story with God, while being completely honest and open and inspiring each person to "live a better story."
6 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Theo Liakouras
5.0 out of 5 stars Hope in a world where all have forgotten it
Reviewed in Germany on August 1, 2022
Verified Purchase
I came upon this book through a recommendation in a site and when I started
reading it, I believed I knew about what it was and what it would be telling.

I was thankfully wrong and despite being right about the science behind it, I was totally surprised by the emotions and thought patterns it awoke in me.

Donald Miller writes about hope and about stories, he tells how to live a better life and how to achieve it. There are no “aha” moments for me, but that was to be expected.

In my case it reminded me, that to loose hope is to live a bad story and if a higher being expects us to be the architect of our happiness, then aren’t we also the architects of our misery?

Thank you Donald for reminding me, what I had forgotten and in a way given up. Life is about the ones who truly want to live it and everyone can do that, but most of us choose not.

Read the book and find out the emotions it awakens on you, it will definitely change you if you are courageous enough to listen to what it has to teach you!
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Green Eyes
5.0 out of 5 stars A real inspirational read, written in everyday language!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 9, 2021
Verified Purchase
Fabulous book. A real inspiration. I've had so many aha moments reading this and can't recommend it enough if you are feeling stuck or frustrated in life. This book will give you a new zest for making the most of every day, for making your story matter and creating a better story of your life! I loved how it's written in really small chapters, some just 2 pages long so it's easy to read and digest. A small investment for a big message!
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Kitabi Keeda
5.0 out of 5 stars It gave no answers. But. It gave me a way of thinking. And that is why I loved it.
Reviewed in India on July 28, 2020
Verified Purchase
Briefest blurb: Donald Miller is living in the glow of a successful memoir. He gets approached by two movie producers who want to make a movie based on his memoir. When they start re-writing Don's life for a film, changing a memoir into a structured story, the real Don starts a journey to edit his actual life and create a tale worth telling.
The book asks... Life is a story; what kind of a story are you living? The idea is: find your skills, take them, and do something with them yourself, rather than waiting for something to happen to you. The transformation starts then.
With an easy, conversational style, Don implants ideas into the reader’s head with stories about himself, his friends and people he meets along the journey of trying to write a better story. There are shades of humour, grief, introspection, and even religion in the book.
I have gone back to so many ideas in this book ever since I have read it. It does not preach. It is not overly philosophical. It talks about God as a major factor in the author’s life, but you do not need to be a believer or even religious to accept it or even understand it. It is about making choices with some force motivating you (God or whatever you believe in).
Why the rare 5? It was written for me. It was about the author but somehow, it was about me. It came at the right time in my life. If earlier, I would not have appreciated it or even finished it maybe. It came when I had many doubts and questions about, well, many things. It gave no answers. But. It gave me a way of thinking. And that is why I loved it.
This book was recommended to me and I recommend this book. I would love to hear what you think of it if you read it.
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Kitabi Keeda
5.0 out of 5 stars It gave no answers. But. It gave me a way of thinking. And that is why I loved it.
Reviewed in India on July 28, 2020
Briefest blurb: Donald Miller is living in the glow of a successful memoir. He gets approached by two movie producers who want to make a movie based on his memoir. When they start re-writing Don's life for a film, changing a memoir into a structured story, the real Don starts a journey to edit his actual life and create a tale worth telling.
The book asks... Life is a story; what kind of a story are you living? The idea is: find your skills, take them, and do something with them yourself, rather than waiting for something to happen to you. The transformation starts then.
With an easy, conversational style, Don implants ideas into the reader’s head with stories about himself, his friends and people he meets along the journey of trying to write a better story. There are shades of humour, grief, introspection, and even religion in the book.
I have gone back to so many ideas in this book ever since I have read it. It does not preach. It is not overly philosophical. It talks about God as a major factor in the author’s life, but you do not need to be a believer or even religious to accept it or even understand it. It is about making choices with some force motivating you (God or whatever you believe in).
Why the rare 5? It was written for me. It was about the author but somehow, it was about me. It came at the right time in my life. If earlier, I would not have appreciated it or even finished it maybe. It came when I had many doubts and questions about, well, many things. It gave no answers. But. It gave me a way of thinking. And that is why I loved it.
This book was recommended to me and I recommend this book. I would love to hear what you think of it if you read it.
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7 people found this helpful
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FannyRazo
5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring+
Reviewed in Mexico on April 18, 2018
Verified Purchase
Amazing book. Donald Miller has a unique style of writing that's both inspiring and unforgettable. No regrets on buying this book.
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Sha
5.0 out of 5 stars Hilarious and insightful
Reviewed in Australia on January 10, 2022
Verified Purchase
What a well written story on how to live life! I learnt so much in sucha short period of time!
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