Author: Haruki Murakami
Publisher: Vintage Canada
ISBN: 0307373088
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 194
Book Description
From the best-selling author of The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle and After Dark, a rich and revelatory memoir about writing and running, and the integral impact both have made on his life. In 1982, having sold his jazz bar to devote himself to writing, Haruki Murakami began running to keep fit. A year later, he’d completed a solo course from Athens to Marathon, and now, after dozens of such races, not to mention triathlons and a slew of critically acclaimed books, he reflects upon the influence the sport has had on his life and—even more important—on his writing. Equal parts training log, travelogue, and reminiscence, this revealing memoir covers his four-month preparation for the 2005 New York City Marathon and includes settings ranging from Tokyo’s Jingu Gaien gardens, where he once shared the course with an Olympian, to the Charles River in Boston among young women who outpace him. Through this marvellous lens of sport emerges a cornucopia of memories and insights: the eureka moment when he decided to become a writer, his greatest triumphs and disappointments, his passion for vintage LPs and the experience, after the age of fifty, of seeing his race times improve and then fall back. By turns funny and sobering, playful and philosophical, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running is both for fans of this masterful yet guardedly private writer and for the exploding population of athletes who find similar satisfaction in distance running.
What I Talk About When I Talk About Running
Author: Haruki Murakami
Publisher: Vintage Canada
ISBN: 0307373088
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 194
Book Description
From the best-selling author of The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle and After Dark, a rich and revelatory memoir about writing and running, and the integral impact both have made on his life. In 1982, having sold his jazz bar to devote himself to writing, Haruki Murakami began running to keep fit. A year later, he’d completed a solo course from Athens to Marathon, and now, after dozens of such races, not to mention triathlons and a slew of critically acclaimed books, he reflects upon the influence the sport has had on his life and—even more important—on his writing. Equal parts training log, travelogue, and reminiscence, this revealing memoir covers his four-month preparation for the 2005 New York City Marathon and includes settings ranging from Tokyo’s Jingu Gaien gardens, where he once shared the course with an Olympian, to the Charles River in Boston among young women who outpace him. Through this marvellous lens of sport emerges a cornucopia of memories and insights: the eureka moment when he decided to become a writer, his greatest triumphs and disappointments, his passion for vintage LPs and the experience, after the age of fifty, of seeing his race times improve and then fall back. By turns funny and sobering, playful and philosophical, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running is both for fans of this masterful yet guardedly private writer and for the exploding population of athletes who find similar satisfaction in distance running.
Publisher: Vintage Canada
ISBN: 0307373088
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 194
Book Description
From the best-selling author of The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle and After Dark, a rich and revelatory memoir about writing and running, and the integral impact both have made on his life. In 1982, having sold his jazz bar to devote himself to writing, Haruki Murakami began running to keep fit. A year later, he’d completed a solo course from Athens to Marathon, and now, after dozens of such races, not to mention triathlons and a slew of critically acclaimed books, he reflects upon the influence the sport has had on his life and—even more important—on his writing. Equal parts training log, travelogue, and reminiscence, this revealing memoir covers his four-month preparation for the 2005 New York City Marathon and includes settings ranging from Tokyo’s Jingu Gaien gardens, where he once shared the course with an Olympian, to the Charles River in Boston among young women who outpace him. Through this marvellous lens of sport emerges a cornucopia of memories and insights: the eureka moment when he decided to become a writer, his greatest triumphs and disappointments, his passion for vintage LPs and the experience, after the age of fifty, of seeing his race times improve and then fall back. By turns funny and sobering, playful and philosophical, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running is both for fans of this masterful yet guardedly private writer and for the exploding population of athletes who find similar satisfaction in distance running.
Pain Is Inevitable, Misery Is Optional
Author: Hyrum W. Smith
Publisher: Shadow Mountain
ISBN: 9781573454506
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 152
Book Description
Publisher: Shadow Mountain
ISBN: 9781573454506
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 152
Book Description
Stick a Geranium in Your Hat and Be Happy
Author: Barbara Johnson
Publisher: HarperChristian + ORM
ISBN: 1418518883
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 208
Book Description
Boomerang blessings. That's what Barbara Johnson calls the encouraging feedback she has received over the years from readers whose lives have been impacted by the message of this million-copy bestseller. If you need a fresh breath of joy in your life, this book is just the prescription for you. With the wit of an Erma Bombeck, Barbara Johnson helps you to look for "life's little sparkles," even in the midst of your most crippling sorrows. No stranger to suffering herself, Barbara's experiences have equipped her with the credentials to help others work through their own suffering. In spite of her difficulties, Barbara has learned that while pain is inevitable to us all, we can choose to pick the flowers instead of the weeds. Barbara will teach you how to release that bubble of joy within you?to claim God's promise to "fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy." ?Job 8:21 (TLB)
Publisher: HarperChristian + ORM
ISBN: 1418518883
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 208
Book Description
Boomerang blessings. That's what Barbara Johnson calls the encouraging feedback she has received over the years from readers whose lives have been impacted by the message of this million-copy bestseller. If you need a fresh breath of joy in your life, this book is just the prescription for you. With the wit of an Erma Bombeck, Barbara Johnson helps you to look for "life's little sparkles," even in the midst of your most crippling sorrows. No stranger to suffering herself, Barbara's experiences have equipped her with the credentials to help others work through their own suffering. In spite of her difficulties, Barbara has learned that while pain is inevitable to us all, we can choose to pick the flowers instead of the weeds. Barbara will teach you how to release that bubble of joy within you?to claim God's promise to "fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy." ?Job 8:21 (TLB)
Pain Is Inevitable Suffering Is Optional
Author: Day Writing Journals
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781075681233
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 106
Book Description
Day Writing Journals the Blank Lined Notebook Writing Journal is ideal Gifts who Love day to day writing Notebooks and Capture Thoughts, Or for everyone who wish to surprise their favorite relative on holidays or all year long, but have no time. Family life Journals provide gift ideas for your relatives or loved ones and lets you make your holiday as a memorable one. Creative Taking Notes Journal Explore Your Inner Gratitude Journaling Perfect Gifts for your Relative on your Favorite Holiday, Father's Day, Mother's Day, Christmas, Birthday, Graduate, Education, School, Special Occasion and Everyday A Memorable and Thoughtful Funny Design on the Cover 104 pages Blank Lined Paper Measures 6" x 9" with Softcover Book Binding Black And White Interior Journal Notebook for Women Men Kids Boys Girls Family Childhood, Youth, Coming Of Age, Death, Loss, Grief, Depression, Family Life, Self Help, Friendship, Love, Marriage, Anniversary, Pregnancy, Spiritual, Travel, Voyage, School, College, University, Career, Workplace, Working, Office, Divorce, Marriage, Parenting, Parent And Children, Dating, Relationships, Singlehood, Single Women, Sister, Wedding, Mom, Dad, Grandpa, Grandma, Brother, Aunt, Daughter, Son, Uncle, Cousin Day Writing Journals provides you year round unique Motivation and Everyday Inspiration Journals, Diaries, Coloring books, Planners, Picture Books, Sketchbooks, Children Activity Books, Comic, Music and Notebooks that are perfect gifts or your own writings. Get creative with us Capture Your Thoughts in This Reflective Writing Notebook that makes your day as a memorable one! Get your copy today ”
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781075681233
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 106
Book Description
Day Writing Journals the Blank Lined Notebook Writing Journal is ideal Gifts who Love day to day writing Notebooks and Capture Thoughts, Or for everyone who wish to surprise their favorite relative on holidays or all year long, but have no time. Family life Journals provide gift ideas for your relatives or loved ones and lets you make your holiday as a memorable one. Creative Taking Notes Journal Explore Your Inner Gratitude Journaling Perfect Gifts for your Relative on your Favorite Holiday, Father's Day, Mother's Day, Christmas, Birthday, Graduate, Education, School, Special Occasion and Everyday A Memorable and Thoughtful Funny Design on the Cover 104 pages Blank Lined Paper Measures 6" x 9" with Softcover Book Binding Black And White Interior Journal Notebook for Women Men Kids Boys Girls Family Childhood, Youth, Coming Of Age, Death, Loss, Grief, Depression, Family Life, Self Help, Friendship, Love, Marriage, Anniversary, Pregnancy, Spiritual, Travel, Voyage, School, College, University, Career, Workplace, Working, Office, Divorce, Marriage, Parenting, Parent And Children, Dating, Relationships, Singlehood, Single Women, Sister, Wedding, Mom, Dad, Grandpa, Grandma, Brother, Aunt, Daughter, Son, Uncle, Cousin Day Writing Journals provides you year round unique Motivation and Everyday Inspiration Journals, Diaries, Coloring books, Planners, Picture Books, Sketchbooks, Children Activity Books, Comic, Music and Notebooks that are perfect gifts or your own writings. Get creative with us Capture Your Thoughts in This Reflective Writing Notebook that makes your day as a memorable one! Get your copy today ”
You Are Not Your Pain
Author: Vidyamala Burch
Publisher: Macmillan + ORM
ISBN: 1250053811
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 300
Book Description
Developed by two authors, Vidyamala Burch and Danny Penman who themselves have struggled with severe pain after sustaining serious injuries, You Are Not Your Pain reveals a simple eight-week program of mindfulness-based practices that will melt away your suffering. Accompanied by audio to guide you, the eight meditations in this book take just ten to twenty minutes per day and have been shown to be as effective as prescription painkillers to soothe some of the most common causes of pain. These mindfulness-based practices soothe the brain's pain networks, while also significantly reducing the anxiety, stress, exhaustion, irritability, and depression that often accompanies chronic pain and illness. Whether you experience back pain, arthritis, or migraines, are suffering from fibromyalgia, celiac disease, or undergoing chemotherapy, you will quickly learn to manage your pain and live life fully once again. Note: Audio meditations are embedded within the ebook. If your device cannot play the audio, you will be redirected to the same content online
Publisher: Macmillan + ORM
ISBN: 1250053811
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 300
Book Description
Developed by two authors, Vidyamala Burch and Danny Penman who themselves have struggled with severe pain after sustaining serious injuries, You Are Not Your Pain reveals a simple eight-week program of mindfulness-based practices that will melt away your suffering. Accompanied by audio to guide you, the eight meditations in this book take just ten to twenty minutes per day and have been shown to be as effective as prescription painkillers to soothe some of the most common causes of pain. These mindfulness-based practices soothe the brain's pain networks, while also significantly reducing the anxiety, stress, exhaustion, irritability, and depression that often accompanies chronic pain and illness. Whether you experience back pain, arthritis, or migraines, are suffering from fibromyalgia, celiac disease, or undergoing chemotherapy, you will quickly learn to manage your pain and live life fully once again. Note: Audio meditations are embedded within the ebook. If your device cannot play the audio, you will be redirected to the same content online
Suffering Is Optional
Author: Gail Brenner
Publisher: New Harbinger Publications
ISBN: 168403017X
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 247
Book Description
If you struggle with self‐defeating thoughts and feelings of inadequacy, you are not alone. We’ve all felt inadequate, believing that we’re broken or otherwise unworthy. But this doesn’t have to be a life sentence. Presenting four guiding principles and five core practices based in deep spiritual wisdom, Suffering Is Optional reveals how to liberate yourself from the prison of false self‐beliefs holding you back. Millions of people feel that they are not good enough. They may struggle every day, seeing themselves as deficient, pathetic, or damaged, and destined to fail. They convince themselves they aren’t worthy of love or respect, and view themselves with self-hatred. When you believe and cling to painful, self-defeating thoughts like “I can’t do it,” “It won’t work,” or “I’m a loser,” they become your personal reality—and the more you repeat them, the more you believe them, until they come to define you. Sadly, these limiting self-definitions lead to even more pain and suffering: hidden shame, problems in relationships, opportunities lost, and a life not fully lived. In Suffering Is Optional, clinical psychologist Gail Brenner offers practical ways to discover that you are not what your thoughts tell you you are. Rather than showing you how to become a better version of yourself, this book goes straight to the heart of the problem—that you’ve mistakenly identified yourself as broken and undeserving—to guide you out of these limiting thoughts and into an investigation of the nature of reality that ultimately liberates you from your suffering. With these exercises, experiments, reflections, practices, and inspiring stories, you’ll have a spiritual solution to your personal problem of limitation and self-sabotage. Using the four guiding principles and five core practices presented in this book—including turning toward direct experience, grounding in aware presence, losing interest in thoughts, welcoming feelings, and the sacred return to presence—you’ll be able to shed your false identity and wake up to the inherent peace and happiness that is available to you in any given moment.
Publisher: New Harbinger Publications
ISBN: 168403017X
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 247
Book Description
If you struggle with self‐defeating thoughts and feelings of inadequacy, you are not alone. We’ve all felt inadequate, believing that we’re broken or otherwise unworthy. But this doesn’t have to be a life sentence. Presenting four guiding principles and five core practices based in deep spiritual wisdom, Suffering Is Optional reveals how to liberate yourself from the prison of false self‐beliefs holding you back. Millions of people feel that they are not good enough. They may struggle every day, seeing themselves as deficient, pathetic, or damaged, and destined to fail. They convince themselves they aren’t worthy of love or respect, and view themselves with self-hatred. When you believe and cling to painful, self-defeating thoughts like “I can’t do it,” “It won’t work,” or “I’m a loser,” they become your personal reality—and the more you repeat them, the more you believe them, until they come to define you. Sadly, these limiting self-definitions lead to even more pain and suffering: hidden shame, problems in relationships, opportunities lost, and a life not fully lived. In Suffering Is Optional, clinical psychologist Gail Brenner offers practical ways to discover that you are not what your thoughts tell you you are. Rather than showing you how to become a better version of yourself, this book goes straight to the heart of the problem—that you’ve mistakenly identified yourself as broken and undeserving—to guide you out of these limiting thoughts and into an investigation of the nature of reality that ultimately liberates you from your suffering. With these exercises, experiments, reflections, practices, and inspiring stories, you’ll have a spiritual solution to your personal problem of limitation and self-sabotage. Using the four guiding principles and five core practices presented in this book—including turning toward direct experience, grounding in aware presence, losing interest in thoughts, welcoming feelings, and the sacred return to presence—you’ll be able to shed your false identity and wake up to the inherent peace and happiness that is available to you in any given moment.
10 Natural Laws of Successful Time and Life Management
Author: Hyrum W. Smith
Publisher: Balance
ISBN: 0446551023
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 246
Book Description
Written for anyone who suffers from "time famine", this essential handbook provides simple, effective methods for successfully taking control of one's hours--and one's life. Smith shows how, by managing time better, anyone can lead a happier, more confident and fulfilled life.
Publisher: Balance
ISBN: 0446551023
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 246
Book Description
Written for anyone who suffers from "time famine", this essential handbook provides simple, effective methods for successfully taking control of one's hours--and one's life. Smith shows how, by managing time better, anyone can lead a happier, more confident and fulfilled life.
Awaken Your Authentic Self
Author: Tony Fahkry
Publisher: Tony Fahkry
ISBN: 1446761649
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 62
Book Description
Complete acceptance of our identity is central to our way of life, given every interaction emerges from our authentic self. The Dalai Lama said it puzzled him why so many people in the West suffer from low self-esteem and lack of acceptance. Our personal needs are met when we honor our authentic self. The media’s influence portrays a fictitious world that doesn’t meet our needs. We are inundated with information to convince us of a news story we can’t live without. Yet, we are no better off because we avoid realizing our own authenticity. 'Awaken Your Authentic Self' is a book to reconnect you with the core of your essential self. It is a move away from whom you should be espoused by popular culture. The book invites you to reconnect with the deepest part of your being which knows who you are and how you should live. We are encoded with the DNA to thrive. Yet, through cultural conditioning and paradigms, we lose our place to the pull of our external environment. We subscribe to ideologies and beliefs regarding who we should be because we want to be accepted. This comes at a cost to our self-worth since we give up an aspect of ourselves and lose our authenticity. However, standing out has become a rite of passage insofar as the clothes one wears, hair color, body piercings and decorations. It may be viewed as a show of defiance instead of a proclamation of distinction. You have more power than you realize. More genius than you can imagine. More wisdom and knowledge than you can ever access. This is not a patronizing statement to seduce you into a false belief. You have unlimited power, and accessing that power is the basis to 'Awaken Your Authentic Self.' When you let go of the false belief that you are lacking or inadequate, in that moment you arouse your potential. Who you are today results from your beliefs, thoughts, and ideas of the world. Unless you challenge the status quo, you remain one of the masses. One has only look to mainstream culture to see the effects the media and marketing hype have on our society. We are drawn into a fictitious way of life at the expense of our sanity and earned dollars.
Publisher: Tony Fahkry
ISBN: 1446761649
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 62
Book Description
Complete acceptance of our identity is central to our way of life, given every interaction emerges from our authentic self. The Dalai Lama said it puzzled him why so many people in the West suffer from low self-esteem and lack of acceptance. Our personal needs are met when we honor our authentic self. The media’s influence portrays a fictitious world that doesn’t meet our needs. We are inundated with information to convince us of a news story we can’t live without. Yet, we are no better off because we avoid realizing our own authenticity. 'Awaken Your Authentic Self' is a book to reconnect you with the core of your essential self. It is a move away from whom you should be espoused by popular culture. The book invites you to reconnect with the deepest part of your being which knows who you are and how you should live. We are encoded with the DNA to thrive. Yet, through cultural conditioning and paradigms, we lose our place to the pull of our external environment. We subscribe to ideologies and beliefs regarding who we should be because we want to be accepted. This comes at a cost to our self-worth since we give up an aspect of ourselves and lose our authenticity. However, standing out has become a rite of passage insofar as the clothes one wears, hair color, body piercings and decorations. It may be viewed as a show of defiance instead of a proclamation of distinction. You have more power than you realize. More genius than you can imagine. More wisdom and knowledge than you can ever access. This is not a patronizing statement to seduce you into a false belief. You have unlimited power, and accessing that power is the basis to 'Awaken Your Authentic Self.' When you let go of the false belief that you are lacking or inadequate, in that moment you arouse your potential. Who you are today results from your beliefs, thoughts, and ideas of the world. Unless you challenge the status quo, you remain one of the masses. One has only look to mainstream culture to see the effects the media and marketing hype have on our society. We are drawn into a fictitious way of life at the expense of our sanity and earned dollars.
The Dalai Lama's Cat and the Power of Meow
Author: David Michie
Publisher: Hay House, Inc
ISBN: 1401948030
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 217
Book Description
"If you ever doubted that your feline companion has her own inner life, just watch what happens when she falls asleep, and loses conscious control of her physical being . . . a twitching of limbs, a quivering of the jaw, sometimes perhaps a snuffling noise or a meow. . . . Cats may indeed be capable of great mindfulness. But we are thinking beings, too. In my own case, unfortunately, a being who thinks rather too much." In the latest installment of the Dalai Lama’s Cat series, His Holiness’s Cat ("HHC") is on a mission: to think less, to experience more, to live in the moment. She soon learns the proper phrase for this, being mindful, or, a concept better known to her as the power of meow. What ensues is a journey to discover her own true nature, to gain a deeper understanding of her mind, and to experience life’s greatest joy, the here and now. Throughout, she shares encounters with familiar inhabitants of Dharamsala, as well as a whole new cast of characters: a senior exec from one of Silicon Valley’s most famous social media companies (hint: the name rhymes with "litter"), the Pope’s beloved dog (who shares a shockingly similar title: HHD, His Holiness’s Dog), and a public health inspector who threatens to have our poor narrator banned from the Himalaya Book Café. In this follow-up to the Dalai Lama’s Cat and the Art of Purring, readers escape to the enchanting and exotic world of the Dalai Lama’s monastery in the Himalayas, and take a peek inside the mind of a delightfully imperfect creature on the path to enlightenment. By accompanying HHC on her journey, you will learn new ways to relate to your own mind: slowing down, finding peace, and abiding in the boundless radiance and benevolence that is your own true nature.
Publisher: Hay House, Inc
ISBN: 1401948030
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 217
Book Description
"If you ever doubted that your feline companion has her own inner life, just watch what happens when she falls asleep, and loses conscious control of her physical being . . . a twitching of limbs, a quivering of the jaw, sometimes perhaps a snuffling noise or a meow. . . . Cats may indeed be capable of great mindfulness. But we are thinking beings, too. In my own case, unfortunately, a being who thinks rather too much." In the latest installment of the Dalai Lama’s Cat series, His Holiness’s Cat ("HHC") is on a mission: to think less, to experience more, to live in the moment. She soon learns the proper phrase for this, being mindful, or, a concept better known to her as the power of meow. What ensues is a journey to discover her own true nature, to gain a deeper understanding of her mind, and to experience life’s greatest joy, the here and now. Throughout, she shares encounters with familiar inhabitants of Dharamsala, as well as a whole new cast of characters: a senior exec from one of Silicon Valley’s most famous social media companies (hint: the name rhymes with "litter"), the Pope’s beloved dog (who shares a shockingly similar title: HHD, His Holiness’s Dog), and a public health inspector who threatens to have our poor narrator banned from the Himalaya Book Café. In this follow-up to the Dalai Lama’s Cat and the Art of Purring, readers escape to the enchanting and exotic world of the Dalai Lama’s monastery in the Himalayas, and take a peek inside the mind of a delightfully imperfect creature on the path to enlightenment. By accompanying HHC on her journey, you will learn new ways to relate to your own mind: slowing down, finding peace, and abiding in the boundless radiance and benevolence that is your own true nature.
Backbone
Author: Karen Duffy
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1628727969
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 206
Book Description
An inspirational, powerful, and funny manual for coping and living with devastating pain. For two decades, Karen Duffy —New York Times bestselling author, former MTV VJ, Revlon model, and actress— has managed to live an enriching life despite living in a state of constant pain. Duffy has sarcoidosis, a disorder that causes the growth of inflammatory cells on different organs of the body. In her case, her sarcoidosis is located in her brain, causing her unimaginable pain. In this powerful, inspirational, funny, and important manual for surviving pain, Duffy draws on her experience as a patient advocate, certified recreational therapist, and hospital chaplain to illuminate gratifying methods people can use to cope with chronic pain and reinforces the sentiment that "circumstances determine our lives, but we shape our lives by what we make of circumstances" (Sir John Wheeler Bennet). More than one-third of the US population—nearly 113 million Americans—is currently living with chronic pain, while another 133 million Americans live with some form of chronic illness. Half of the US population lives with the challenges of these invisible illnesses where their symptoms are not always obvious to the casual observer. Addressing a country ravaged by both chronic pain and opioid addiction, Backbone offers a salve of self-sufficiency, spunk, and perseverance. With a light tone, deft wordplay, and interactive gems such as the Bill Murray Pain Scale, Mastectomy Paper Dolls, and a crown to wear just for getting out of bed, Duffy's serious—and seriously funny—book is for the massive population living with chronic pain who are eager to be understood and helped, and sends the message that despite the pain, there is a way to a good life.
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1628727969
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 206
Book Description
An inspirational, powerful, and funny manual for coping and living with devastating pain. For two decades, Karen Duffy —New York Times bestselling author, former MTV VJ, Revlon model, and actress— has managed to live an enriching life despite living in a state of constant pain. Duffy has sarcoidosis, a disorder that causes the growth of inflammatory cells on different organs of the body. In her case, her sarcoidosis is located in her brain, causing her unimaginable pain. In this powerful, inspirational, funny, and important manual for surviving pain, Duffy draws on her experience as a patient advocate, certified recreational therapist, and hospital chaplain to illuminate gratifying methods people can use to cope with chronic pain and reinforces the sentiment that "circumstances determine our lives, but we shape our lives by what we make of circumstances" (Sir John Wheeler Bennet). More than one-third of the US population—nearly 113 million Americans—is currently living with chronic pain, while another 133 million Americans live with some form of chronic illness. Half of the US population lives with the challenges of these invisible illnesses where their symptoms are not always obvious to the casual observer. Addressing a country ravaged by both chronic pain and opioid addiction, Backbone offers a salve of self-sufficiency, spunk, and perseverance. With a light tone, deft wordplay, and interactive gems such as the Bill Murray Pain Scale, Mastectomy Paper Dolls, and a crown to wear just for getting out of bed, Duffy's serious—and seriously funny—book is for the massive population living with chronic pain who are eager to be understood and helped, and sends the message that despite the pain, there is a way to a good life.