Description

How have the modern world, technology and our addiction to information changed who we are? What effect does it have on our relationships, minds and bodies? What can the simple act of sitting still teach us about ourselves?

When Tim Parks fails to find a cause for his crippling chronic pain, he turns to meditation. This is, however, not your average self-help book or conversion story; instead, it is a refreshingly honest and profoundly moving introspection of one writer and his quest to overcome the inner battle between mind and body. A revelatory read with delightful cultural and literary references, Teach us to Sit Still by Booker-shortlisted author Tim Parks examines how the philosophy of ‘sit still, relax and stop worrying’ can be profoundly life-altering.

‘Teach us to Sit Still made me laugh; it made me cry; and it made me seriously think about taking up Vispassana meditation’ The Times

Publisher Review

"His journey will open your mind to the possibilities of mindfulness" -- Polly Vernon * Sunday Telegraph * "Teach us to Sit Still made me laugh; it made me cry; and it made me seriously think about taking up Vispassana meditation" -- Will Self * The Times * "A searingly honest, viscerally vivid, darkly comic self-examination of the connections between writing personality and health. Once I started reading it, I didn't want to stop" -- David Lodge * Guardian * "This is a crazy, wince-inducing, uplifting book... Parks has done a service to the many people who would never look at a cheesy self-help book or try anything with a whiff of spirituality about it" * Financial Times * "A movingly honest book that is about a great deal more than breathing and meditation" -- Susan Hill * The Lady *