How Not to Be Afraid of Your Own Life and over 400,000 other books are available for Amazon Kindle – Amazon’s new wireless reading device. Learn more

 

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
 
Express Checkout with PayPhrase
What's this? | Create PayPhrase
More Buying Choices
42 used & new from $2.75
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
   
How Not to Be Afraid of Your Own Life: Opening Your Heart to Confidence, Intimacy, and Joy
 
 
Share your own customer images
Search inside this book
Start reading How Not to Be Afraid of Your Own Life on your Kindle in under a minute.

Don’t have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here.
 
  

How Not to Be Afraid of Your Own Life: Opening Your Heart to Confidence, Intimacy, and Joy (Paperback)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: journaling exercise, meditation program, Seven-Day Meditation Program, Dalai Lama, Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche (more...)
4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
List Price: $12.95
Price: $10.36 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
You Save: $2.59 (20%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.

Want it delivered Thursday, February 11? Choose One-Day Shipping at checkout. Details
31 new from $2.87 11 used from $2.75

Formats

 Amazon Price New from Used from
Kindle Edition $9.99   -- --
Hardcover --   $0.25 $0.01
Paperback, Bargain Price $5.18   $5.18 $4.89
Paperback, December 26, 2007 $10.36   $2.87 $2.75
Audio, CD, Abridged, Audiobook, CD $24.95   $12.98 $2.00
Audio, Download Offsite Link $13.10 or less with new Audible membership

Frequently Bought Together

How Not to Be Afraid of Your Own Life: Opening Your Heart to Confidence, Intimacy, and Joy + The Wisdom of a Broken Heart: An Uncommon Guide to Healing, Insight, and Love + The Hard Questions: 100 Questions to Ask Before You Say "I Do"
Price For All Three: $34.00

Show availability and shipping details

  • This item: How Not to Be Afraid of Your Own Life: Opening Your Heart to Confidence, Intimacy, and Joy by Susan Piver

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

  • The Wisdom of a Broken Heart: An Uncommon Guide to Healing, Insight, and Love by Susan Piver

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

  • The Hard Questions: 100 Questions to Ask Before You Say "I Do" by Susan Piver

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

The Wisdom of a Broken Heart: An Uncommon Guide to Healing, Insight, and Love

The Wisdom of a Broken Heart: An Uncommon Guide to Healing, Insight, and Love

by Susan Piver
4.2 out of 5 stars (5)  $15.64
Quiet Mind: A Beginner's Guide to Meditation

Quiet Mind: A Beginner's Guide to Meditation

by Susan Piver
5.0 out of 5 stars (2)  $10.08
The Hard Questions: 100 Questions to Ask Before You Say "I Do"

The Hard Questions: 100 Questions to Ask Before You Say "I Do"

by Susan Piver
3.7 out of 5 stars (51)  $8.00
The Hard Questions for an Authentic Life : 100 Essential Questions for Tapping into Your Inner Wisdom

The Hard Questions for an Authentic Life : 100 Essential Questions for Tapping into Your Inner Wisdom

by Susan Piver
3.8 out of 5 stars (4) 
On My Own: The Art of Being a Woman Alone

On My Own: The Art of Being a Woman Alone

by Florence Arlene Falk
3.9 out of 5 stars (15)  $10.04
› Explore similar items

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Readers of popular self-help books may recognize Piver as the author of The Hard Questions: 100 Essential Questions to Ask Before You Say "I Do." But Piver has also been a student of Buddhism for 10 years and is an authorized meditation teacher. This little book distills what Piver has learned from meditation, retreats and sessions with her spiritual teacher, offering a skillful description of Buddhist meditation for the beginner. Her point is very simple: "There is a kind of happiness that is effortlessly present at all times. This happiness comes from stopping the relentless search to fulfill our own needs. It comes from relaxing with things exactly as they are." In that vein, she explores several basic Buddhist concepts and also lays out a sort of in-home retreat for greater self-awareness, a seven-day, hour-by-hour program of journaling, walks and meditation. In trying in this way to combine the more spiritual Buddhist and more pragmatic self-help genres, she produces a book that's both personal and contemplative, but that may not appeal to readers of either genre. (Apr. 5)
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.

Review

“I have long recommended meditation as central to a healthy lifestyle. Susan Piver teaches this important practice in a trustworthy and practical way—and shows us how to use its lessons to create a fearless life.”—Andrew Weil, M.D., author of Healthy Aging
--This text refers to the Audio CD edition.
See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

  • Paperback: 224 pages
  • Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; 1st edition (December 26, 2007)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0312355971
  • ISBN-13: 978-0312355975
  • Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #170,932 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    •  Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

More About the Author

Susan Piver
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

› Visit Amazon's Susan Piver Page
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:
Inside This Book (learn more)
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
journaling exercise, meditation program
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Seven-Day Meditation Program, Dalai Lama, Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, New York, Own Life
Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

How Not to Be Afraid of Your Own Life: Opening Your Heart to Confidence, Intimacy, and Joy
80% buy the item featured on this page:
How Not to Be Afraid of Your Own Life: Opening Your Heart to Confidence, Intimacy, and Joy 4.5 out of 5 stars (10)
$10.36
The Wisdom of a Broken Heart: An Uncommon Guide to Healing, Insight, and Love
10% buy
The Wisdom of a Broken Heart: An Uncommon Guide to Healing, Insight, and Love 4.2 out of 5 stars (5)
$15.64
Quiet Mind: A Beginner's Guide to Meditation
4% buy
Quiet Mind: A Beginner's Guide to Meditation 5.0 out of 5 stars (2)
$10.08
The Hard Questions: 100 Questions to Ask Before You Say "I Do"
4% buy
The Hard Questions: 100 Questions to Ask Before You Say "I Do" 3.7 out of 5 stars (51)
$8.00
Explore similar items

Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 
(1)
(1)
(1)
Agree with these tags?

Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags
 

Customer Reviews

10 Reviews
5 star:
 (7)
4 star:
 (1)
3 star:
 (2)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.5 out of 5 stars (10 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Coming in to yourself, April 28, 2007
This review is from: How Not to Be Afraid of Your Own Life: Opening Your Heart to Confidence, Intimacy, and Joy (Hardcover)
When I read the title of this book I was a little taken aback--Afraid of my own life? Could I be? But Piver addresses issues and fears that are common themes in life--fears that are part of the human experience--and shows us in a methodically, and linear way, how to acknowledge and then diffuse those fears, by facing them head on. She disects some basic ideas in a very clear, direct, friendly and accessible way. It is as though Ms. Piver is sitting down to a cup of tea with you, to be that friend that listens and affirms all the crappy stuff that can happen to us, but then goes on to show us that by using the ancient practice of meditiation, ultimately, we can be ok with it. Or perhaps more accurately, it can be ok with us.

The meditation instructions are clear, specific and very accessible--and the 7 day meditation program looks like a great way take a committed practice of meditation to the next level. I'll say, it has inspired ME to get my butt to the cushion more, since reading the book.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews  
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


 
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful intro to Buddhism, July 12, 2007
By Kate (Cleveland OH) - See all my reviews
This review is from: How Not to Be Afraid of Your Own Life: Opening Your Heart to Confidence, Intimacy, and Joy (Hardcover)
Susan Piver's book is a wonderful introduction to Buddhism for the beginner. She explains the basic meditations of Buddhist practice with a fresh, light approach. Many Buddhist meditation texts are bogged down in background, and she skips the unnecessary details to cut to the chase. She is able to use references to the everyday situations most people encounter, and apply principles in the book.
This is my "go-to" book for my practice and I highly recommend it.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews  
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


 
12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Appealing, honest, brave, July 29, 2007
By Nicole S. Urdang (Western New York) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)      
This review is from: How Not to Be Afraid of Your Own Life: Opening Your Heart to Confidence, Intimacy, and Joy (Hardcover)
This is an excellent book on Buddhism that weaves Susan's own stories and challenges into the fabric of a meditation practice.
I found it accessible, straightforward, and compelling.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews  
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars a good place to start
Susan Piver's book is a very good place to start if you want to get familiar with the basics of a beginning Buddhist meditation practice. Read more
Published 13 months ago by silverfish

5.0 out of 5 stars Valuable, Applicable, & Relevant
How Not to Be Afraid of Your Own Life by Susan Piver is for anyone actively seeking to make a change. Read more
Published 16 months ago by Suzanne Kyra

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, accessible intro to meditation
I first got acquainted with Susan Piver via the internet and her articles for the Shambhala Sun. I am new to the practice of meditation and am just beginning to study Buddhism,... Read more
Published 19 months ago by Robyn Underwood

3.0 out of 5 stars How not to be afraid
This is very easy reading. Everything she talks about is unpretencious and easy going. She gives good examples of how her life was stuck in fear and how to over come that with... Read more
Published 21 months ago by Cristyn

5.0 out of 5 stars Breathe in, Breathe out and let go. That's it, really!
I could not have found Susan's very excellent book at a better time. At the time, I was living the dream of a 30 year old New Yorker in post break-up hell. Read more
Published 23 months ago by Sarah Jackson

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent insights and communication style
I very much appreciate the views Susan shares in her great little book. I'm halfway into it and have already received much more than many large books have presented to readers... Read more
Published on November 8, 2007 by Barbara A. Castleman

3.0 out of 5 stars Disappointed
After reading the other reviews of this book I was really looking forward to reading it. Unfortunately, I found the book rather superficial and without much meaningful content... Read more
Published on August 8, 2007 by Elysa P

Only search this product's reviews


Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   

So You'd Like to...

Create a guide

Product Information from the Amapedia Community

Beta (What's this?)

Look for Similar Items by Category

Look for Similar Items by Subject

Search Books by subject:









i.e., each book must be in subject 1 AND subject 2 AND ...
 

Feedback

If you need help or have a question for Customer Service, contact us.
 Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
Is there any other feedback you would like to provide?

Your comments can help make our site better for everyone.


Your Recent History

 (What's this?)

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.