Foyles

Smile or Die
Barbara Ehrenreich

Positive thinking: the key to self-improvement or a mindless mantra peddled by psychobabblers? Here the author of Nickel and Dimed and Bait and Switch offers a droll and incisive analysis of the cult of cheerfulness. When Ehrenreich was diagnosed with breast cancer, she quickly tired of platitudes and pink ribbons, despite the health professionals' insistence on the value of positive thinking. Just as Richard Wiseman, in his book 59 Seconds, demolishes the psychological bunkum of books such as Rhonda Byrne's The Secret, Ehrenreich argues that undue optimism and the fear of giving bad news is responsible for everything from overly neurotic introspection to the giddy self-congratulation which led to the current banking crisis.

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How to Live
Sarah Bakewell

Attempts at an Answer The question of how one can do the honourable thing while flourishing and feeling happy was a Renaissance obsession, and for no one more than Michel Eyquem de Montaigne. The first full-length biography in English for half a century reveals the nature of his curious childhood, youthful adventures and friendships through the questions he posed in his wide-ranging essays, ultimately providing his answer to the question of how to live.

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The Compassionate Mind
Paul Gilbert

Compassion for others has always been seen as a virtue, but what is less recognised is its capacity to bring inner peace. Professor Gilbert, an authority on depression, explains how to develop those compassionate instincts so that they breed contentment all round. Our fast-acting minds react quickly and aggressively to perceived threats, but Gilbert's explanations and practical brain-training exercises overcome the stress and anxiety which often result.

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Becoming Enlightened
Dalai Lama XIV Bstan-'dzin-rgya-mtsho

His Holiness the Dalai Lama reveals how life-enhancing Buddhist practices are as relevant today as they have ever been and can help us break free from the cycles of suffering that ensnare us. He encourages us to broaden our outlook and to adjust our personal values. Practical, step-by-step exercises, steeped in wisdom, show how to make the most of each moment, how to undo the negative effects of past deeds and how to grow spiritually closer to finding deep inner happiness.

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The Roman Catholic Church
Edward Norman

The history of the Roman Catholic Church is the gateway to understanding 2000 years of Western and often world civilization. Distinguished ecclesiastical scholar Edward Norman begins with how Roman Catholics understand their faith, before telling the story of the multifarious ways in which their Church has shaped the lives and beliefs of Christians and non-Christians alike.

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