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On Balance

Adam Phillips

$39.99

Paperback

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English
Penguin
12 September 2011
'Wise, witty and playful essays, taking in the nature of fundamentalism, excess, authenticity and much more' John Gray, Prospect

Are we too obsessed with excess? What can childhood teach us about bad behaviour? And should we be happy, or is there something better we might be?

In On Balance, acclaimed psychoanalyst Adam Phillips explores a variety of urgent concerns related to how we attempt to manage our conflicting desires, needs and motives.

In essays on excess, childhood development, fairy tales and the pursuit of happiness, Phillips provides exhilarating arguments, witty wordplay and much intellectual and emotional food for thought on literature and life.
By:  
Imprint:   Penguin
Country of Publication:   United Kingdom
Dimensions:   Height: 198mm,  Width: 129mm,  Spine: 20mm
Weight:   234g
ISBN:   9780241143896
ISBN 10:   0241143896
Pages:   336
Publication Date:  
Recommended Age:   From 0 years
Audience:   General/trade ,  College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  ELT Advanced ,  Primary
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active

Adam Phillips is a psychoanalyst and a visiting professor in the English department at the University of York. He is the author of several previous volumes, all widely acclaimed, including On Kissing, Tickling and Being Bored, Going Sane and Side Effects. His most recent book is On Kindness, which was co-written with historian Barbara Taylor.

Reviews for On Balance

A refreshing, invigorating experience...Adam Phillips is one of the richest and most rewarding essayists of our time. -- Los Angeles Times Highly pragmatic...Phillips's authority as a writer comes in no small part from his own experience as a highly regarded therapist....Like a priest, he is concerned with damnation and salvation, under the secular names of sickness and cure. --Adam Kirsch, The Boston Globe Transformative...Phillips can tease out contradictions with extraordinary delicacy....He shows that pleasure and desire are not simple; they can be feared...and used to hide things we should really see. -- The Guardian (London) Gently provocative reading on themes of need and desire...Phillips's ideas are fresh and inventive, casting new light on counterintuitive topics from the psychological importance of punishment to the questionable pursuit of happiness. -- Financial Times A set of beguiling essays...the author provides polished ponderables for all readers. -- Kirkus Reviews


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