The Examined Life: How We Lose and Find Ourselves Hardcover - 2013

Media reviews

INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER
LONGLISTED 2013 – Guardian First Book Award

 
“An insightful and beautifully written book about the process of psychoanalysis, and the ways people’s efforts to connect the past, present and future reflect their capacity to change.... A series of slim, piercing chapters that read like a combination of Chekhov and Oliver Sacks. They invite us to identify with Mr. Grosz’s patients and their losses and regrets, even as we are made to marvel at the complexities and convolutions of the human mind.”
—Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times Book Review
 
“Although the author teaches psychoanalytic theory at University College London…the writing is anything but clinical. There is a lucidity and a gently amused empathy to the stories that feels Chekhovian in their ability to recognize the small, transformative moments in our relationships. And this therapist isn’t a blank slate; his doubts and daydreams in the consulting room enter into the stories, which helps level the playing field between therapist and patient, and triangulates the mystery.”
—Marni Jackson, Maclean’s
 
“Writing with an elegance and poignancy that would make Raymond Carver envious, the long-time psychoanalyst seems to argue that our greatest difficulties should be looked at as stories rather than problems…. Whatever comes out, the richness of any person’s honest story of adversity makes mere happiness pale in comparison…. The Examined Life tells of the melancholy nature of being human in a way that is surprisingly uplifting.”
—Micah Toub, The Globe and Mail

“Engaging, frank, and with many penetrating insights. His short, succinct chapters have both the tension and the satisfaction of miniature detective or mystery stories... A stimulating book.”
–Michael Holroyd, The Spectator

“Brilliant... After reading [Grosz’s] absorbing accounts of his patients’ journeys you might feel that The Examined Life ought to be given out free at birth.”
–Melissa Katsoulis, The Times

“Grosz’s vignettes are so brilliantly put together that they read like pieces of bare, illuminating fiction... It is this combination of tenacious detective work, remarkable compassion and sheer, unending curiosity for the oddities of the human heart that makes these stories utterly captivating.”
–Robert Collins, Sunday Times

“[Grosz's accounts] are shaped like short stories, but true and moving in ways that fiction cannot be. […] Gradually accumulating through his book, Grosz provides, not a definition, but an enactment of the purpose of psychoanalysis, which is both modest and profound.”
–Alexander Linklater, The Observer

“Excellent… this book arrives like a box of chocolates. Thirty-one elegantly presented chapters which, when you bite into them, each reveals something sweet, rich or crunchy. Every one of these case histories bears repeating. All offer worthwhile insights.”
–Susanna Rustin, The Guardian

“Stephen Grosz has condensed thousands of hours of consultations into this gem... [he] writes lucidly and with sensitivity, treating his patients with respect…sprinkled with wise reflections. This is highly recommended.”
–Leyla Sanai, The Independent

“This book conveys the nuanced complexities of psychoanalysis in deceptively simple human stories. It is written with generosity toward both its subjects and its readers; with authentic wit; and with flashes of profound insight. The novelistic charm of its case histories makes it impossible to put down, but while you may read it for entertainment, it will leave you wiser about humanity than you were when you picked it up.”
–Andrew Solomon, Author of “Far From the Tree”

“I couldn’t put this down -- I read about other people, but learned about myself at the same time. Real stories can be so much more fascinating than fictional ones, especially with Stephen Grosz. No preaching, no clichés -- just wisdom.”
–Victoria Hislop, Author of “The Thread”