Other books that might interest you

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  Idleness - A Philosophical Essay

  Brian O'Connor

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  The first book to challenge modern philosophy’s case against idleness, revealing why the idle state is one of true freedom 
  For millennia, idleness and laziness have been regarded as vices. We're all expected to work to survive and get ahead, and devoting energy to anything but labor and self-improvement can seem like a luxury or a moral failure. Far from questioning this conventional wisdom, modern philosophers have worked hard to develop new reasons to denigrate idleness. In Idleness, the first book to challenge modern philosophy's portrayal of inactivity, Brian O'Connor argues that the case against an indifference to work and effort is flawed--and that idle aimlessness may instead allow for the highest form of freedom. 
  Idleness explores how some of the most influential modern philosophers drew a direct connection between making the most of our humanity and avoiding laziness. Idleness was dismissed as contrary to the need people have to become autonomous and make whole, integrated beings of themselves (Kant); to be useful (Kant and Hegel); to accept communal norms (Hegel); to contribute to the social good by working (Marx); and to avoid boredom (Schopenhauer and de Beauvoir).  
  O'Connor throws doubt on all these arguments, presenting a sympathetic vision of the inactive and unserious that draws on more productive ideas about idleness, from ancient Greece through Robert Burton's Anatomy of Melancholy, Schiller and Marcuse's thoughts about the importance of play, and recent critiques of the cult of work. A thought-provoking reconsideration of productivity for the twenty-first century, Idleness shows that, from now on, no theory of what it means to have a free mind can exclude idleness from the conversation.

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  This Will Make You Smarter - 150...

  John Brockman

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  Edge.org presents brilliant, accessible, cutting-edge ideas to improve our decision-making skills and improve our cognitive toolkits, with contributions by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, Richard Dawkins, Brian Eno, Steven Pinker, and more. Featuring a foreword by New York Times columnist David Brooks and edited by John Brockman, This Will Make You Smarter presents some of the best wisdom from today’s leading thinkers—to make better thinkers out of the leaders of tomorrow.

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  Freaky Fetish

  Tara Dawn, Erin Lee, Rena Marin,...

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  Freaky Fetish 
  A Crazy Ink anthology 
  What's your kink? You know you have one. 
  Welcome to the crazy practices of fetishes that will drop your jaw. From feet to ropes and back again, Freaky Fetish shines a light on the darkness where alternative sexual practices often lurk. 
  Fear not: It's time to let your freak flag fly! 
  Because sometimes, it's fun to get a little creative in the sheets. 
  Six authors, six stories of freak in the sheets, and a whole lot of fun. What's your kink? Freaky Fetish is sure to open minds and make you think twice about just how kinky you are…

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  Sickle Cell Natural Healing - A...

  Tamika Moseley

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  After spending every three months of her newborn's life in the hospital managing his sickle cell disease, Tamika Moseley knew she had to change what she was doing or the hospital would be her second home. In this deeply personal book, Tamika shares her story of the difficult journey she took to find natural ways to treat her son's debilitating disease. Three years since she started using herbs to minimize his sickle cell crises, her son is living a normal, healthy and pain-free life. Whether you have sickle cell disease or the trait, this book will show you what your body needs and how to treat your symptoms so that pain is no longer a part of your vocabulary. As Tamika likes to say, "Knowledge is power!" Sickle Cell Natural Healing: A Mother's Journey gives you the benefit of the wisdom one fearless and determined mother collected so that others suffering with this disease can thrive.

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  Izu Dancer and Other Stories -...

  Yasushi Inoue, Yasunari Kawabata

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  This Japanese literature collection contains four translated stories from two of Japan's most beloved and acclaimed fiction writers.The Izu Dancer, Yasunari Kawabata's first work to bring him recognition as a writer, is a novella about six Izu Peninsula travelers.  As the six travelers journey together, intimacy develops and friendship overcomes class differences.  Capturing the shy eroticism of adolescence, The Izu Dancer is a charming picture of the times.Yasushi Inoue's The Counterfeiter, although set in modern times, poses universal questions that transcend culture an era.  Abasute and The Full Moon both explore themes of separation, loneliness, and isolation.  Through the gloomy tales, Inoue's compassion shines, revealing yet another aspect of an author known for his vivid precision and economy of words.  Inoue's stories are at least partially autobiographical, and Inoue's attitudes toward human destiny and fatalism are strongly influenced by his separation from his parents at an early age—yet all of his stories reveal his great compassion for his fellow human being.

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  Writing out Loud - A Collection...

  C. Allen Berry

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  Writing Out Loud
  
  I love writing. To watch words magically appear across the blank screen of a white page is a very enjoyable experience. For a while I wasnt really sure if I loved the craft enough. I remember the passion I had for it when I was younger and the seeds were first sown, and the sprouts of imagination unfurled themselves to push their way up through the hard soil and grit of grammar, and between the cracks of writers block. 
  In those days I feasted on writing as if it were a final meal or some forbidden fruit I had never tasted before. Locked away in the hot, shadowy comfort of my attic room, Id sit hunched for hours over the small keyboard of my older brothers portable grey typewriter, plotting and pecking out the drama of make-believe lives. 
  I think thats what I love most about writing. The fact that I get to fool around with history, that of others as well as my own; that I get to weave it into a pattern of a whole other reality and come up with a garment of my own design. 
  For me, words are too powerful and too precious to be given in complaint. I dont think we really understand how potent and complicated it is to speak and write them. If we did, then we would probably recognize that Hate is too harsh a word to use in reference to diets and exercise and TV shows we dislikeand especially towards people. And that Love is too prized a sentiment to be so casually attached to our favorite foods and movies.
  
  Writing Out Loud is a passionate exploration of the world through various avenues of literary expression. From essays and prose, poetry and journaling. It is an understanding of how ones life is edified and made whole through the act of writing, and its power in helping us make sense of our place on the planet. As the author explains: When I writewhen I captured my thoughts on paperI take them from the realm of my imagination and make them more real. All the incomplete pieces of who I am or imagine myself to be come together in a more coherent shape. In writing I am made whole.

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