New updated edition, the greatest books are distilled in this curious reader's guide to popular psychology. We are invited to embark on a journey through excerpts from 50 books covering hundreds of ground-breaking ideas. Explore William James's The Principals of Psychology, as well as contemporary writings like Malcom Gladwell's Blink. Topics included are the science of the brain, tapping the unconscious mind, happiness and mental health, personality and the self, human motivation, the dynamics of relationships, creative power and communication skills. In effect this is your shortcut to the most important ideas on the mind, personality and human nature with ideas from the great thinkers like Alfred Adler, Hans Eysenck on the four dimensions of personality, Anna Freud on defence mechanisms, Sigmund Freud on dreams, Eric Hoffer on mass psychology, Karen Horney on inner conflicts, Alfred Kinsey on sexual psychology, Ivan Pavlov on conditioning, and B. S. Skinner on the power of environment among them. Discover the findings of contemporary research and practice on introversion, marriage, self-control and the burden of choice, and gain the essence of the greatest writings like A Guide to Rational Living and The Man Who Mistook His Wife for A Hat among them. 319pp, paperback.

Sub-titled 'How Friendship, Optimism and Kindness Can Help You Live to 100', this research-driven book proves how strong social networks will help us live to a great age. Science journalist Marta Zeraska has sifted through countless scientific papers and interviewed dozens of experts in the fields of molecular biochemistry, epidemiology and neuroscience. What she discovered shattered her long-held beliefs about ageing and longevity. A strong support network of family and friends lowers mortality risk by about 45%, while exercise only lowers it by about 23%. Volunteering in your free time lowers it by 22% while certain health fads like turmeric haven't been shown to help at all. In addition to healthy nutrition and physical activity, deepening friendships, practising empathy and contemplating your purpose in life can improve your lifespan. Through 11 chapters Zeraska takes us around the world, from catching wild mice in the woods of Oxfordshire to flower arranging with octogenarians in Japan, from laboratories to 'hugging centres'. She looks at immortal animals, zombie-killing pills, mortgage worries, why feeling all alone may shorten your life, attachment and social grooming, random kindness and superheroes and how meditation and mindfulness boost health. 294pp in large softback.

Sleep is something of a mystery and we feel instinctively that it does our minds and bodies profound good. Generally the brain seems to use the hours of sleep to sort and analyse new knowledge, solve problems and make strategies, and we are primed to ensure that we get sleep when we need it. The effect of melatonin is not just to send us to sleep at regular intervals, but also to align our body clocks with the onset of night time. The good news is that sleep problems are treatable, and it may not be a question of taking medication. Many of the book's 50 strategies involve 'visualisations' and are drawn from three psychotherapeutic techniques. They are emotional brain training, cognitive behavioural therapy, and mindfulness-based stress reduction, which can be successfully used in conjunction with each other. We go through the sleep cycle four to six times a night - light, real, deep, restorative and REM sleep. Ensure your bedroom is conducive to sleep, you have a restful evening and avoid excessive alcohol or heavy foods which might end up disturbing your night. With a bit of dark time your body will learn to take the hint and make you sleepy before you go to bed. Breathing, tensing and relaxing muscle groups, loosen and relaxing your body, you will mentally prime your muscles to relax and enjoy the sensation of release. Clean sheets, getting up with the rooster, enchanted forests, skywriting, floating bed, pillow talk, mastering your dreams, here are checklists, positive thoughts, pain relief, and this book is the perfect size to keep on your bedside table and give you a helping hand to drift off. 160 beautifully designed pages, colour photos and decorations.

The pleasantness of our experiences, the extent to which our desires are fulfilled relates to us feeling good, but what is also important for our wellbeing is our ability to function well psychologically. This is referred to as 'eudaimonic wellbeing', and includes factors such as autonomy, self-acceptance, having a meaning and purpose in life, and recognising personal growth. Distinct from hedonic wellbeing is the emotional state and experience of nature connectedness. Already this is leading towards the change in the way we prescribe treatments and therapies to address mental health. You may recall that our editor Annie is organising a wellness memorial garden in the name of her late husband for exactly these reasons. To appreciate beauty of nature, celebrate its meaning and respond emotionally, we must activate our compassion for nature and be kinder to it. Our spring of surprises germinates into a summer of love for nature which can burst from our balconies, gardens, parks and green places. Megan McCubbin will excite you with some gems of extraordinary new science celebrating some of conservations successes and exploring methods we all have to generate more in our own spaces or communities. It asks you to look at how green your own actions are, how the UK has turned a blind eye to the catastrophic destruction of wildflower meadows with plants, butterflies, moths, dragonflies, damselflies, bees, wasps and beetles which have disappeared from this floral wonderland, together with many mammals and birds. Our remaining native wildflower meadows are vital havens for biodiversity and support those pollinators which service some 35% of the world's human food crop. Also of conservation concern are the lapwing, common snipe and curlews whose numbers are still declining fast. Salmon farming, rodent control, the love of beavers, global warming, through personal stories, conservation breakthroughs and scientific discoveries, the book explores the wonder and solace of nature and the ways in which we can connect with it and protect it. Full of facts and not too preachy. 296pp, paperback.

'Despite the unpromising financial situation, after twenty-odd years trying to make a living on and around Grub Street - several novels published to grudgingly respectful reviews and negligible sales - I feel that this might just be the year in which something happens. Then again it might not. But hope drives all writers on.' '6th April 2007. Writing income for the year so far: -£300.' This is Chris Paling's diary of trying to make a living as a writer through the typical career trajectory of what is deemed a 'mid-list' novelist. In renumeration terms, writing is a career that often ends in disappointment and despair, and occasionally disgrace. Paling artfully explores what compels him and so many others to write - the battling joys and agonies of when that compulsion beds itself in one's psyche, and a day without writing is a day wasted. His is a fascinating insight into the writing process as he tracks the need to write something new or something old in a new way, something relevant, something that needs to be written when very little actually does, in search of that ever-elusive goal of being 'in print'. By turns moving, wry and brutally honest, the book unveils the rewarding yet soul-baring life of a novelist. At its heart it is a love letter to the art of writing and also a profound reflection on the forces that drive us all. 228pp.

Most people under 60 have never seen a person die, so have become deeply fearful about death; both their own, and the deaths of their beloved others. They have no role models to show them how to care for a dying person, and therefore no confidence in being able to do so. 'My hope is that the baby boomer cohort who pushed for the return of the midwives to de-medicalised birth will also be instrumental in reclaiming the death process. This book is my contribution to the re-empowering of all of us to take charge of our lives and our deaths, remembering that we know how to die, just as we knew how to come into this world. We also know how to heal, and how to settle our lives as best we can before we die... The greatest gift we could give our loved ones.' Janie Brown, oncology nurse for 30 years and counsellor of cancer patients with terminal diagnoses, recounts 20 conversations she has had with the dying, including those personally close to her. Each conversation uncovers a different perspective and experience of death, while at the same time exploring its universalities. We meet George, defying death, Jim who will have no talk of dying, Brigid with her best laid plans and Bella talking about soul retrieval. Each chapter illuminates the experience of opening up to death, preparing, healing the past, dealing with unfinished business or accepting what is unresolved, making choices about dying on one's own terms, and learning to draw comfort from nature. A reassuring road map through one of the most important and least discussed experiences of our lives. These stories heal, nourish and strengthen your heart. 282pp.

Science, technology and Western liberal democracy have all had a dramatic impact on our quality of life. The book is peppered with delightful nuggets on this engaging and expansive tour of our modern-day therapeutic landscape. It teaches us what the great psychologists have learned about surviving discontent in an Age of Anxiety. Compared to previous generations we have unprecedented access to information, increased personal freedom, and more material comforts and more possessions. Yet, even before the shock of Covid-19, more people than ever were reported being depressed, anxious or unfulfilled. As our material circumstances become easier, life seems to get harder. Why should this be? For over a hundred years, psychotherapists have been developing and refining models of the human mind. Psychology can offer original perspectives on the big human questions usually entrusted to philosophers and representatives of faith - Who am I? Why am I here? How should I live? This compelling and important book provides the principal contributions of the outstanding figures associated with psychology, from Freud to Ellis, Jung to Laing, Adler to Hayes. Viewed as a single, cohesive intellectual tradition, Frank Tallis argues that psychotherapeutic thinking is an immensely valuable and under-exploited resource. 343pp, paperback with illus.

This useful self-help book demystifies the condition of Anxiety by explaining its different forms, suggesting a wide range of remedies and above all by taking it seriously. Part 1 explains the different types of anxiety and the forms they take, including the well-known Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD), Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), hypochondria, panic, phobias, eating disorders, and sexual response anxiety, concluding with the prevalence of anxieties generally in psychiatric disorders. The second part deals with Social Anxiety, a widespread condition that responds well to Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). Ancient medicine recognised the link between the cognitive and emotional, and this balance is central to the healing possible with CBT. The author notes the modern factors that can exacerbate the condition such as cyberbullying or FOMO (fear of missing out), but also suggests that online interaction can be a positive way of disguising the breathlessness, blushing or stuttering that are symptomatic of social anxiety. The substances sometimes used to alleviate such symptoms do not treat the condition, to which the only answer is therapy. Finally in Section Three she takes the reader through a typical session with a therapist and provides templates for recording feelings and thoughts to start the journey of recovery. Thought distortion, emotional reasoning and expressions such as "should", "must" and "have to" are banished from the vocabulary of healing. 299pp, paperback, numerous line drawings and cartoons.

Star Trek Captain, explorer, diplomat, archaeologist and vintner Captain Jean-Luc Picard is a true Renaissance man of the 24th century. Discover his sage advice, insights and wisdom from the deck of the USS Enterprise and beyond. Engage. Picard's assimilation by the Borge in 2366 and subsequent separation from the Collective shook him to the core. To have his individuality and humanity suddenly stripped affected him for years afterwards. 'Things are only impossible until they're not!' 'It's ironic, isn't it? All this magnificent technology, and we still find ourselves susceptible to the ravages of old age. Loss of dignity. The slow betrayal of our bodies by forces we cannot master.' 'I prefer to look on the future as something which is not written in stone.' 'Mister Worf, villains who twirl their moustaches are easy to spot. Those who clothe themselves in good deeds are well camouflaged.' Beautifully designed, every page has a quote to ponder, its source from the Star Trek Next Generation series, and many colour film stills throughout. Beautifully designed, 208pp.
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The authors are founders of Restful Being, a yoga and meditation school focussed on the extraordinary power of rest to help people fulfill their innate sense of steady, spacious calm. One reader describes the 'simplicity and beauty of the method.' And another 'You provide a really wonderful space for just being, and nurturing the self, which is so very needed after the pandemic has left us reeling emotionally and facing many challenges, internal and external.' 'Whether you're sleep deprived, stressed, ill, agitated or even just grappling with a nagging feeling that something isn't quite right, you are still, deep within yourself, just as okay as absolutely everyone else alive right now. At the very depths of your being, there is no resistance, tension or tiredness. There is no judgement, pain or fear. This is the very essence of who you are. But we know this might not be a possibility you can entertain right now...' Being able to recognise and allow true rest is vital to us feeling whole, authentic and balanced and this is a book that quite literally urges you to do nothing! Through simple, easily learned techniques and featuring a brand new chapter on why rest is vital in times of crisis, the book shows you how to find a moment of peace even in the most frantic of days and to find answers and assurance when confused or conflicted. 246pp, paperback.