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Reasons to Stay Alive
Current price:
$17.00
Publication Date: February 23rd, 2016
Publisher:
Penguin Life
ISBN:
9780143128724
Pages:
272
Usually Ships in 1 to 5 Days
Staff Reviews
Being sad is not the same as being depressed, suffering from anxiety is not the same as having worry, and mental health is not just putting on a face mask and watching a movie (not that those things aren’t great and sometimes helpful, too). As author Matt Haig documents his journey through depression and anxiety, he takes a realistic and helpful look at the things that have worked to help keep him alive, whether that be a mindset, a habit, or something as simple as going for a run. The book is personal and tangible, while just being universal enough to apply to an array of different kinds of people. The book is refreshingly hopeful and positive. I will leave you with my favorite quote from one of the most notable chapters in the book, named after the book itself: “Reasons to Stay Alive,”
“You will one day experience joy that matches this pain. You will cry euphoric tears at the Beach Boys, you will stare down at a baby’s face as she lies asleep in your lap, you will make great friends, you will eat delicious foods you haven’t tried yet, you will be able to look at a view from a high place and not assess the likelihood of dying from falling. There are books you haven’t read yet that will enrich you, films you will watch while eating extra-large buckets of popcorn, and you will dance and laugh and have sex and go for runs by the river and have late-night conversations and laugh until it hurts. Life is waiting for you. You might be stuck here for a while, but the world isn’t going anywhere. Hang in there if you can. Life is always worth it.”
—
Caroline
Description
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Midnight Library.
"Destined to become a modern classic." —Entertainment Weekly
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO FEEL TRULY ALIVE?
At the age of 24, Matt Haig's world caved in. He could see no way to go on living. This is the true story of how he came through crisis, triumphed over an illness that almost destroyed him and learned to live again.
A moving, funny and joyous exploration of how to live better, love better and feel more alive, Reasons to Stay Alive is more than a memoir. It is a book about making the most of your time on earth.
"I wrote this book because the oldest clichés remain the truest. Time heals. The bottom of the valley never provides the clearest view. The tunnel does have light at the end of it, even if we haven't been able to see it . . . Words, just sometimes, really can set you free."
Praise for Reasons to Stay Alive
Named one of Entertainment Weekly's Must-Read Books of 2016
Finalist for the Waterstone's Book of the Year
"Destined to become a modern classic." —Entertainment Weekly
"An in-depth exploration of Haig’s battle with depression, if you need a pick-me-up on a very fundamental level, you could do a lot worse than this book." - PEOPLE
"I dog-eared 45 pages in Haig's compact book where he wrote profound or poignant things. I could have easily marked more of them." - Jim Higgings, THE MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL
"Wonderful and essential" - Christopher Weir, THE HUFFINGTON POST
"a quick, witty and at times profound take on an illness many people suffer from, but sometimes can’t bring themselves to talk about." - THE MINNEAPOLIS STAR-TRIBUNE
"Things just got real. His honest — and surprisingly funny — first person account is a reminder that no matter how hopeless life may seem, it really never is." - NY METRO
“A scintillating read.” - THE DAILY MAIL
"REASONS TO STAY ALIVE is essential reading for anyone who has dealt with depression and for anyone who loves someone with the disease." - BOOK REPORTER
"Fascinating and beautifully written." - IAN RANKIN
"Brings a difficult and sensitive subject out of the darkness and into the light." - MICHAEL PALIN
"Matt Haig is astounding." - STEPHEN FRY
"Maybe the most important book I've read this year" - SIMON MAYO
"A life-saving book" - AMANDA CRAIG
"Matt Haig uses words like a tin-opener. We are the tin" - JEANETTE WINTERSON
"Brings a difficult and sensitive subject out of the darkness and into the light" - MICHAEL PALIN
"Thoughtful, honest and incredibly insightful" - JENNY COLGAN
"Brilliant and salutary . . . should be on prescription" - REV. RICHARD COLES
"A vibrant, encouraging depiction of a sinister disorder." KIRKUS REVIEW
"Warm and engaging, and shot through with humour...a valuable contribution to the conversation." - THE SUNDAY TIMES
Praise for How To Stop Time
“Matt Haig’s latest book, How To Stop Time, is marvelous in every sense of the word. Clever, funny, poignant, and written with Haig’s trademark blend of crystalline prose and deft storytelling, this is a book that stirs the heart and mind in equal measure. A hugely enjoyable read.” - Deborah Harkness author of The All Souls Trilogy
"Compelling and full of life's big questions, How To Stop Time is a book you will not be able to put down." —Graeme Simsion, author of The Rosie Project
"The narrator is 400 years old, but the sardonic asides give this pacy novel a modern twist. Matt Haig has designs on our heartstrings . . . The energy and zip of this book are hard to resist." —The Guardian
"Matt Haig is astounding." —Stephen Fry
