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Type of bind: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 155.937
EAN num: 9780787996680
ISBN number: 0787996688
Label: Jossey-Bass
Manufacturer: Jossey-Bass
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 320
Printing Date: February 04, 2008
Publishing house: Jossey-Bass
Sale Popularity Level: 12170
Studio: Jossey-Bass
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Product Description:
Written in Irv Yalom’s inimitable story-telling style, Staring at the Sun is a profoundly encouraging approach to the universal issue of mortality. In this magisterial opus, capping a lifetime of work and personal experience, Dr. Yalom helps us recognize that the fear of death is at the heart of much of our anxiety. Such recognition is often catalyzed by an “awakening experience”—a dream, or loss (the death of a loved one, divorce, loss of a job or home), illness, trauma, or aging.
Once we confront our own mortality, Dr. Yalom writes, we are inspired to rearrange our priorities, communicate more deeply with those we love, appreciate more keenly the beauty of life, and increase our willingness to take the risks necessary for personal fulfillment.
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Rated by buyers 
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The idea of the reality of death, and the anxiety caused in our lives by that reality, is nothing new. Read Ernest Becker's 1973 Pulitzer Prize winning The Denial of Death for a brilliant analysis of how death motivates all human action. Yalom's practical message, spiced with case studies, provides insigth and instruction for dealing with the prospect and reality of death. Yet, it misses the mark in providing humanity with a wider option that will help not only individuals but the species from overcoming the problems and failures which are directly attributable to the general refusal and inability on the part of cultures, whole civilizations, to deal with the issue of the death anxiety.
Rated by buyers -
It's a hard topic to present to the general public since everyone will have a bias against the author's viewpoint. You might agree with his anti-religious views or not; however, the fact that he bases all his conclusions on this world view automatically excludes so much of the concept of death. I appreciate the atheist viewpoint in this presentation; however, it feels too one-sided. I wish this was a book tackling the same hard topics written by Yalom AND a person of faith.
Still, it is a good read - uncomfortable at times, but ultimately an experience worthwhile.
Rated by buyers -
This is a more difficult read than most of Yalom's other books. His books are lucid and often inspirational. Death is not an easy subject. I kept putting it down. But something he does in most books is include very personal and meaningful anecdotes. One of the best parts is his inclusion of encounters close to death with 3 of his mentors. Those stories and his impressions of them are revealing and unforgettable. He tells his own early encounters with the deaths of his parents and friends in a way that any person can relate to. Although I don't like the subject, he is a great writer. I am glad that he has written so much.
Rated by buyers 
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Maybe the best book about our reaction to the 'terror of death' since the classic 'On Death And Dying' by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross. A psychology lecturer told me Elisabeth, a world expert on the topic of facing the end of life, ended up alone in a hospice in Arizona. I think no such fate faces Irvin Yalom. He will be surrounded by friends, and will know his powerful spirit will live through his writing. His bracing book is perfect for folks looking at the final stage of life without set fixed relgious mindsets.
Famous psychologist Erik Erikson's 8th stage of life is Ego Integrity vs. Despair, and this book gives great pointers on how we can realise our life was worthwhile, and how to avoid the despair that some find shadows what should be a life ending in the bright sunlight.
Rated by buyers -
Since all of us face death, it is natural to view this passage with a near-irrational panic. Dr. Yalom is a most readable writer. If there is one message that one can take away from "Staring at the Sun," it is that living in the moment, savoring it, is an infinitely more life-affirming path than fearing what we may have no power to control. And following this message will help us help our loved ones and friends as well--no small thing.
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