Sane New World: A User's Guide to the Normal-Crazy Mind

The #1 UK bestseller that presents a funny, honest, and engaging look at the craziness of modern life, explaining why we’re all just a little bit out of our minds.

In Sane New World, Ruby Wax - comedian, writer and mental health advocate - shows us just how our minds can send us mad as our internal critics play on a permanent loop tape ‘Don’t do that.. why you... you didn’t... should have... but you didn’t...’. Ruby knows those voices well. She has been on a tough but ultimately enlightening journey that has taken her from battling depression to achieving a Masters Degree from Oxford University in Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy.

In Sane New World, Ruby helps us all understand why we sabotage our sanity, how our brains work and how we can rewire our thinking – often through simple mindfulness techniques - to find calm in a frenetic world.

“"The United States has for too long been deprived of one of our greatest comic talents-the inimitable Ruby Wax.”

“Ruby Wax offers a fresh and revealing insider’s view of how the potential torments of everyday life can be eased as we train our minds to enable our feelings, thoughts, and behaviors to become more stable and adaptive. As a spokesperson for the power of mindful awareness, our humorous and forthright guide offers up a unique blend of personal experience and academic education to inspire us to enhance the health of our bodies, our minds, and our relationships.”
—Daniel J. Siegel, M.D., New York Times– bestselling author of Brainstorm

“Ruby Wax is at her best in this wonderful book. Its acute observations are both extremely funny and deeply moving. Many people will be grateful for her courage, openness, humor and wisdom.”
—Mark Williams, author of Mindfulness

“The United States has for too long been deprived of one of our greatest comic talents—the inimitable Ruby Wax.  In this book, she puts her hilarity in service of the important message that we can change our own minds to live better lives.  Her disquisition will be wonderfully helpful to those whose minds need changing, and wonderfully entertaining to everyone else.”
—Andrew Solomon, author of Far From the Tree

“I love this book more than I love Ruby. And that's saying quite a bit...in a loud, funny voice. Yes...I love this book. And I know books. And I know love. And Ruby's book is both.”—Carrie Fisher

“Ruby Wax is brave, generous and hilarious – the perfect guide on a tour of the brain and how it workings affect our overall well-being. And she is passionate about our collective need to tap into the power of mindfulness to help still our minds in an age of speed, hyperconnectivity and distraction.”
--Arianna Huffington, New York Times-bestselling author of Thrive

"Finally -- a map for the troubled human mind.  And it's funny."
—Caitlin Moran, author of How to Be a Woman

“Through humor and unbridled truth, Ruby Wax shares her journey to mindfulness, illuminating how it can improve our state of mind and change our brain for a healthier, happier life.”
—Goldie Hawn, New York Times bestselling author of 10 Mindful Minutes

“With self-effacing, ironic humor (“Depression doesn’t care if you’re famous, live in a mud hut, or what culture you come from, it just loves everyone”), the author describes her struggle with mental health, her treatment, and its effect on her career. Alternating with the author’s personal narrative are easy-to-understand descriptions of how the brain works (“What’s in Your Brain? What’s on Your Mind?”) and helpful exercises for managing stress and changing negative thinking. Wax’s unconventional approach may inspire others to seek help in coping with mental illness.”
—Library Journal

“Ruby Wax has an extraordinary mind, and she has brought it to bear with trademark wit and searing honesty on the subject of that mind and the minds of all us. Very few will be able to read this wonderful contribution the literature of mental health without recognizing some part of themselves and certainly of someone they know. A ruby beyond price.”
—Stephen Fry

"A very funny book about how to be calm and poised and not bonkers."
—Helen Fielding, author of Bridget Jones’s Diary

“Wonderful, painfully funny and instructive.”
—Allison Pearson, author of I Don’t Know How She Does It

“I was both amused and educated by Ruby Wax's self-help look at our brains, and the ways they’re out to get us, and what we can do about it. She's a smart and funny writer on a mission to help us help ourselves. I was impressed.”
—Neil Gaiman

"Witty, wise and thought-provoking. “
—Nigella Lawson

Ruby Wax is an actress and author who began her career with the Royal Shakespeare Company before moving into television. She has contributed to, written and edited numerous scripts for TV including Absolutely Fabulous. After three decades working on stage, TV and radio she then changed direction, completing both a Psychotherapy Diploma and a Masters Degree in Mindfulness Based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy from Oxford University. She now presents workshops for corporate leaders, helping them to come to a deeper and more direct level of communication with their clients and colleagues, and campaigns on mental health issues.

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