Frugal Fiction takes pride in offering works by talented independent authors, and one of our own has a new book scheduled for release in April, 2008. The unique voice that offers us Welcome to Eutopia, Mr. Bok for only $3.99 has now penned Everything Has Two Handles: The Stoic’s Guide to the Art of Living published by Hamilton Books.
“In this breathtaking tour of ancient wisdom, Ron Pies, M.D., makes the philosophy of the Stoics come alive for the modern reader. Touching on our most urgent contemporary problems—the meaning of happiness, the role of pleasure, the importance of wisdom, friendship, balance, harmony, and anger—the Stoics provide a surprisingly fresh and instructive set of principles about how to live. With numerous examples from the world’s philosophical and religious traditions, as well as vignettes about people struggling to understand their lives in the 21st century, Pies has created a guide filled with warmth, clear thinking, strong values, and the deep pleasure that comes from our recognition of the enduring truths.”—Richard M. Berlin, M.D., Associate Professor of Psychiatry, University of Massachusetts Medical School; poet and columnist Psychiatric Times
In the course of this compact and insightful work, Dr. Ronald Pies, tells us a little about what happiness is, and a lot about how to achieve it. The first chapter begins with a reminder from the great Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, that “things do not touch the soul.” This, explains Pies, “is the keystone in the arch of Stoic philosophy.” In a sense, then, the rest of the book is an extended meditation on how we might avoid letting things touch our souls too much. But, it is much more than simply a meditation. From here, Pies goes on to offer readers a well-researched, often witty explanation of how Stoic philosophy—as it resonates not only with Christian and Judaic, but also with Buddhist and Hindu worldviews—can guide and improve their lives. In the process, he draws on his own considerable clinical experience to offer composite case vignettes, both positive and negative, that illustrate the principles he is discussing.
Ronald Pies, M.D. is Professor of Psychiatry and Lecturer on Bioethics and Humanities at S.U.N.Y. Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, N.Y.; and Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston. He is also Editor-in-Chief of the Psychiatric Times. Dr. Pies is the author of several psychiatric textbooks, and a guide to psychotherapy for the general public (A Consumer’s Guide to Choosing the Right Psychotherapist, Jason Aronson, 1997). Dr. Pies is also a published poet (Creeping Thyme, Brandylane) and the author of a collection of short stories (Zimmerman’s Tefillin, PublishAmerica). He lives with his wife, Nancy Butters MSW, near Boston.
