In Praise of Slowness: Challenging the Cult of Speed (Plus) [Deckle Edge] [Paperback]

Carl Honore (Author)

Book Description

Release date: September 6, 2005 | Series: Plus

We live in the age of speed. We strain to be more efficient, to cram more into each minute, each hour, each day. Since the Industrial Revolution shifted the world into high gear, the cult of speed has pushed us to a breaking point. Consider these facts: Americans on average spend seventy-two minutes of every day behind the wheel of a car, a typical business executive now loses sixty-eight hours a year to being put on hold, and American adults currently devote on average a mere half hour per week to making love.

Living on the edge of exhaustion, we are constantly reminded by our bodies and minds that the pace of life is spinning out of control. In Praise of Slowness traces the history of our increasingly breathless relationship with time and tackles the consequences of living in this accelerated culture of our own creation. Why are we always in such a rush? What is the cure for time sickness? Is it possible, or even desirable, to slow down? Realizing the price we pay for unrelenting speed, people all over the world are reclaiming their time and slowing down the pace -- and living happier, healthier, and more productive lives as a result. A Slow revolution is taking place.

Here you will find no Luddite calls to overthrow technology and seek a preindustrial utopia. This is a modern revolution, championed by cell-phone using, e-mailing lovers of sanity. The Slow philosophy can be summed up in a single word -- balance. People are discovering energy and efficiency where they may have been least expected -- in slowing down.

In this engaging and entertaining exploration, award-winning journalist and rehabilitated speedaholic Carl Honoré details our perennial love affair with efficiency and speed in a perfect blend of anecdotal reportage, history, and intellectual inquiry. In Praise of Slowness is the first comprehensive look at the worldwide Slow movements making their way into the mainstream -- in offices, factories, neighborhoods, kitchens, hospitals, concert halls, bedrooms, gyms, and schools. Defining a movement that is here to stay, this spirited manifesto will make you completely rethink your relationship with time.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A former "speedaholic," an award-winning Canadian journalist advocates living a slower, more measured existence, in virtually every area, a philosophy he defines as "balance." Honoré's personal wake-up call came when he began reading one-minute bedtime stories to his two-year-old son in order to save time. The absurdity of this practice dramatized how he, like most of the world, was caught up in a speed culture that probably began with the Industrial Revolution, was spurred by urbanization and increased dramatically with 20th-century advances in technology. The author explores, in convincing and skillful prose, a quiet revolution known as "the slow movement," which is attempting to integrate the advances of the information age into a lifestyle that is marked by an "inner slowness" that gives more depth to relationships with others and with oneself. Although there is no official movement, Honoré credits Carol Petrini, an Italian culinary writer and founder of the slow food movement in Italy, with spearheading the trend to using fresh local foods, grown with sustainable farming techniques that are consumed in a leisurely manner with good company. The author also explores other slow movements, such as the practice of Tantric sex (mindful sexual union as a road to enlightenment), complementary and alternative medicine, new urbanism and the importance of leisure activities like knitting, painting and music. For the overprogrammed and stressed, slow and steady may win the race.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Tempted by a book of "one-minute bedtime stories" to read to his son and thereby save time while fulfilling, albeit barely, the paternal role, Honore had a moment of truth. Speed, he realized, was a cultural addiction that, far from enhancing his life, was eroding his pleasure in it. He set about finding those swimming--slowly, of course, but strongly--against the tide. Prime among them is Slow Food, started in Italy to support that nation's time-honored approach to making cheeses, wines, and other regional foods. Now promoting the joys of the table and connection to regional agriculture internationally, Slow Food is one of a growing number of organizations urging us to slow down to enjoy life more. Whether advocating gentle alternative medical therapies (e.g., massage), tantric sex, musical compositions that take ages to perform, or the deceleration of childhood, these organizations share the beliefs that faster isn't better, and more is rarely enough. Honore's engaging report on the tortoises among the hares should be embraced by those with quality-of-life and environmental concerns. Patricia Monaghan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 321 pages
• Publisher: HarperOne; Reprint edition (September 6, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060750510
• ISBN-13: 978-0060750510
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 6.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (61 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #87,736 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

150 of 151 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Slow truly is "the new fast"! August 7, 2004

By The Cranky Editor

Format:Hardcover

I actually read this book about six weeks ago while vacationing with friends. The fact that I still remember it clearly and am still thinking about it is one of the best recommendations I could give. I read several books a week, and most of them do a relatively quick mental disappearing act. But this one is definitely a keeper.

As one of the other readers pointed out, this is not so much a how-to guide as a cultural snapshot of some of the more absurd Western practices that have accelerated our lives to an almost ludicrous degree. (Those who have tried driving a car during lunch hour while using one hand to eat fast food and the other to return phone calls will know immediately what I'm talking about.)

I once read a review that started by listing all of the things the reader had done differently since reading the book. In that same spirit, let me tell you that since I read this book more than a month ago, I have been:

*giving myself permission to take naps and get a full night's sleep almost every night

*watching less TV and taking more walks

*making a point to cook a real dinner several nights a week, with the whole family assembled at the table

*taking breaks during the work day, which I find has actually increased my productivity

*calling old friends long-distance and reconnecting

*taken my daughter out of gymnastics to keep the family at home and unscheduled

These are not enormous changes in my life -- I was doing some of them before -- but they are important ones. What's more, they've been easy to implement. Now I need to work on not taking my laptop everywhere and telling myself it's OK not to check my work email when I've got the flu!...

The chapter I most appreciated was the one on parenting. Children do not understand the need for our fast pace, and what they need more than anything is our time. This book made me realize the number of times I tell my daughter to hurry up/we're late for school/we need to go now/blah blah blah. I do not want my daughter to grow up like so many kids in our culture: overprogrammed, overscheduled, and stressed out.

So, five stars for this book. I've already recommended it to several friends, including the ones I read parts of this aloud to on vacation. (We spent the week repeating the book's mantra, "Slow is the new fast.") Ironically enough, this book on slowness is a remarkably fast read. The chapters are short and engaging; the writing is sharp and sometimes quite funny. Honore is deeply conscious of his own need to change, such as when he gets a speeding ticket on his way to one of the 4-hour Italian dinners that feature in the "slow food" chapter. :-) One thing I wish he had talked about, since the book delves into spiritual issues, is the movement back toward the observation of a weekly sabbath. That practice has changed my life and the whole rhythm of my weeks. Well, perhaps that's fodder for a sequel. This is an excellent book. Read more ›

34 of 36 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars TAKE IT EASY, BUD.. June 15, 2004

By Shashank Tripathi VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

Along the way I've picked up several religions and spiritual books of all stripes that advocate the benefits of meditation, silence, and retreats as ways to heal the body, mind, and soul.

But Honore's well researched treatise provides what I believe is the first incisive overview of an important cultural phenomenon as we immerse our lives in instant online messengers, SMS thumb tribes, skipped breakfast, limp chicken sandwiches for lunch, and a bout of 'power yoga' to punctuate that little crevice of a break in the evenings..

Honore's writing style may occasionally wear a "Manifesto" dress and many of his suggestions to live a slow life may have a fairly non-trivial opportunity cost depending on where you live, but it is a very timely and wonderfully thought-provoking read nonetheless.

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Feelin' groovy March 3, 2005

By Debbie the Book Devourer

Format:Hardcover

I have been gradually embracing slowness in my life for some time, starting with saying "no" to so many after-work activities, cooking more often, walking away from my desk occasionally, and, most importantly, just taking the time to enjoy the moment instead of thinking about what I must do in the next moment. It took me more years than I care to acknowledge to realize that I am, and always have been, pretty much Slow in my ways, and to just stop trying to be otherwise.

So I was already in the "slow is beautiful" camp when I picked up this book. Carl Honore's well-researched and balanced look at slowing down merely confirmed what I already know: taking time to enjoy the moment, take care of one's self, nourish relationships, and just simply be still is the key to happiness and health, at least for me.

Honore starts by discussing the real downside of the Fast life: stress-related illnesses, sleep deprivation, feeling out of control, feeling rage. He then discusses the benefits of the Slow life: feeling more creative and satisfied with life, just for starters. Then he describes how people are slowing down in different aspects of life: cooking and eating, work, leisure time... Finally, he wraps it all up by asking us to evaluate ways we can slow down. The back of the book contains lots of resources to get us started....

I liked many things about this book, besides agreeing completely with the premise: Honore emphasizes balance -- that there are times when we should be Fast, and, for example, there is nothing wrong with working lots of hours if you really like to; his arguments are well-supported by his research and are not extreme; he acknowledges that making changes is not easy, yet gives us many practical examples of ways we can slow down; and the book was so well written and logically laid out that, much as I tried to, I couldn't read it slowly!

If you like this book, you might also check out Take Back Your Time, edited by John De Graaf; Affluenza, also by De Graaf; and Work to Live by Joe Robinson. I have read the first, a collection of essays by time experts, and have the other two on my list. Read more ›

76 of 87 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Make time to read this one! May 24, 2004

By Tw Rutledge

Format:Hardcover

With "In Praise of Slowness," Carl Honore offers a gift that is simultaneously outrageous and practical --- what a great combination. It is outrageous in that our culture has become so addicted to speed (the pace, not the drug) that for many of us, the idea of slowing down and making more conscious choices about how our time is spent is perceived as nearly impossible. It is practical in that there is nothing impossible about what Honore describes and recommends in this useful and enlightening book.

As a psychotherapist, speaker and author (Embracing Fear & Finding the Courage to Live Your Life) who teaches the advantages of living life by decision rather than default, I appreciate Honore's emphasis on responsibility of choice. He is not recommending that we exchange one end of the continuum (speed) for the opposite end (slowness). Instead this book is about developing the full range of choices --- as in, "I want to be ready and able to move as quickly in life as the situation calls for, but I also want to be capable and willing to slow down and not approach every task and every errand as if is a matter of life or death."

"In Praise of Slowness" takes us on a very interesting tour of places where slowness is already becoming more valued (and practiced). He gives examples ranging from individuals to medical professionals (that's not about the long, slow wait to see the doctor), to even city planners who are designing communities that are conducive to slowing it all down. Much of this is about a return to bottom-line human values --- caring more about the quality of our lives than the quantity of items we check off our list at the end of each day.

Most of all, this is a book about the importance of being in charge of our own lives.... This is an informative, enlightening and entertaining read, and I recommend that you make time to read it.

And get an extra copy to leave on the desk of the busiest, most rushed person you know.

- Thom Rutledge, author of Embracing Fear & Finding the Courage to Live Your Life Read more ›